Agricultural-Based Food Production Geoenvironment Stressors - Sustainable Practices in Geoenvironmental Engineering - page 208

TABLE 6.5
Sustainability Indicators Developed by the United Kingdom

Area Indicator

Agriculture, rural economy, society
Structure of the agriculture industry Agricultural assets and liabilities

Age of farmers
Percentages of holdings that are tenanted

Farm inancial resources EU Producer Support Estimate (PSE)

Agri-environment payments to farmers
Total income from farming
Average earnings of agricultural workers

Agricultural productivity Agricultural productivity

Agricultural employment Agricultural employment

Farm management systems
Management

Adoption of farm management systems

Organic farming Area converted to organic farming

Codes of practice Knowledge of codes of agricultural practices

Inputs
Pesticide use

Pesticides in rivers and groundwater
Quantity of pesticide active ingredients used
Area treated with pesticides
Pesticide residues in food

Nutrients N and P losses from agriculture

P levels due to agriculture in soil
Manure management
Ammonia emissions

Greenhouse gas emissions Emissions of methane and NO x from agriculture

Energy Direct consumption by farms

Trends in energy inputs to agriculture

Resource use
Water Use of water for irrigation

Soil Organic matter in soil

Heavy metals in top soils

Agricultural land Area of agricultural land

Change in land use from agriculture to herd
development

Nonfood crops Planting of nonfood crops

Conservation value of agricultural land
Environmental conservation Area of agricultural land committed to environmental
conservation
Landscape Characteristic features of farmland
Habitats Areas of cereal ield margins under environmental
management
Biodiversity Area of semi-natural grassland
Populations of key farmland birds
Source: Adapted from MAFF, Towards Sustainable Agriculture: A Pilot Set of Indicators , Ministry of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Food, MAFF Publications, London, February, 74 pp., 2000.