Transition processes and natural resource management - Transition Pathways towards Sustainability in Agriculture: Case Studies from Europe - page 114

management encourages political participation (Adger et al. , 2005), creating an interface
between politics, economy and society. According to Vatn (2005) there are three main
aspects of a resource regime: access to and distribution of the resource; the related
transaction costs; and the perceptions, interests and values arising from the interaction of
actors and agents. Concerning alternative policy approaches in order to resolve the problem
of environmental impacts created by human activity, the same author suggests that public
intervention could be directed towards either regulating inputs or the production process as
a whole. The former is a somewhat imprecise method, especially when diffuse pollution is
encountered as in the cases we analyse here, or in terms of emissions which usually raise
transaction costs to prohibitive levels.
Concluding this short introduction, it should be noted that the above approach does not
follow the neo-classical approach in which a common resource is defined as one from
which nobody may be excluded. In this chapter, a common natural resource is considered a
'good' serving society. In that sense, this approach grants rights and responsibilities to
citizens to make choices concerning future developments (Vatn, 2005).
Setting the scene
The case study areas
The common characteristic of the three case studies (Fig. 8.1) is that they focus on areas
where agriculture is exerting pressure on water resources. The French study region is
located in the north of Brittany and includes the catchment areas of five rivers running into
Lannion Bay. Apart from a wooded valley, the majority of the catchment is agricultural,
arable land, complex farming systems, and agricultural land interspersed with natural areas.
Multiple compounding factors, such as specific photoperiods, high water temperatures, a
low degree of sea water turbulence, and relatively high levels of nutrients provided by
converging streams, contribute to the development of green algae which periodically
washes up on the beaches of the flat, semi-enclosed and shallow Lannion Bay.
The water catchments in the Mangfall Valley, the German study region, are situated 50
km from Munich in the district of Miesbach, Upper Bavaria, where one third of the
district's total area is used for agriculture. The region is notable for hosting the largest
continuous area under organic farming in Germany, due to the organic farming programme
supported by the water supplier of the city of Munich. Water protection, partly overlaid by
protected landscape areas, has been designated in the head areas of drinking water wells.
The Greek study area is the department of Imathia in the region of Central Macedonia,
northern Greece. Since 2006 it has constituted part of a Nitrate Vulnerable Zone as the area
is part of the overall water catchment of two rivers. Furthermore, the delta of the two rivers
is part of a NATURA 2000 protected site. Irrigated crops account for 93% of the area, a far
higher average than the national figure of approximately 30%. Furthermore, it was the
region with the highest rate of fertilizer application according to the most recent available
data (Beopoulos, 1996).
For the research, interviews with 56 individuals representing institutions, local and
regional governments and authorities, researchers, agricultural cooperatives, farmers ,
consultants and experts were conducted (24 for Lannion Bay, 10 for Mangfall Valley and