Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Table 7.7
The distribution of the number of Seamzones represented per Soil Typological Unit
Deciles
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Number of Seamzones per STU
1
1
1
2
2
3
4
6
10
27
Applications
This section gives a few examples on how the Agri-Environmental Zonation is
applied in the SEAMLESS project. Firstly, the use of Seamzones as a stratification to
select so-called sample regions is described. Secondly, it is described how statistical
information on farm types and biophysical data are linked using the Seamzones as
spatial framework. Finally, an overview of the use of biophysical data as model
input in SEAMLESS is given.
Selection of Sample Regions
The Seamzones have been used as a framework for selection of sample regions.
Sample regions are used to collect detailed information on farm management not
available in the European level statistical sources. This again enables detailed
modelling at crop and farm type level within these regions. The starting point for
the selection of sample regions was that NUTS2 regions should be selected as this
is the level for market level agricultural modelling in SEAMLESS. Another starting
point was that a total number of regions of ca. 20 was judged to be feasible for
modelling purposes. Finally, the selection of the regions should also take into
account that the collection of data had to prioritize a limited number of regions,
where a more detailed set of data could be collected, taken into account that these
regions should still represent the variation in biophysical conditions for farming
across EU25. An optimal solution for this would be to select regions that could
represent each of the 12 environmental zones. However, some of the environmental
zones on the one hand occur in complex patterns (the zones highly influenced by
altitude rather than latitude/longitude) and on the other hand are less important
from an agricultural point of view. This is the case for the zones Alpine south,
Alpine north and Mediterranean mountains. Optimally, there should be one detailed
sample region within the nine remaining environmental zones. As a second step it
was decided to aim that the remaining sample regions should ensure representation
of the variation in farm types within all environmental zones. This was done by
selecting regions that together included the most important farm types in terms of area
farmed. Typically, this resulted in selection of regions that differed in terms of for
example arable versus livestock farms and in terms of small versus large farms.
3
3
At the time of the selection FADN data on farm types were not yet available for the ten new
Member States. Therefore information on intensity of farming was not available across the entire
territory and was not used as a basis for the selection of sample regions.
