Conceptual development of a harmonised method for tracking change and evaluating policy in the agri-environment: The Agri-environmental Footprint Index |
| |
Authors: | Gordon Purvis Geertrui Louwagie Greg Northey Simon Mortimer Julian Park Alice Mauchline John Finn Jørgen Primdahl Henrik Vejre Jens Peter Vesterager Karlheinz Knickel Nadia Kasperczyk Katalin Balázs George Vlahos Stamatios Christopoulos Jukka Peltola |
| |
Institution: | 1. Agriculture and Food Science Centre, School of Biology and Environmental Sciences, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland;2. School of Agriculture, Policy and Development, The University of Reading, Earley Gate, PO Box 237, Reading RG6 6AR, UK;3. Teagasc, Johnstown Castle, Environment Research Centre, Wexford, Ireland;4. Danish Centre for Forest, Landscape and Planning, University of Copenhagen, Rolighedsvej 23, DK-1958 Frederiksberg C, Denmark;5. Institute for Rural Development Research at Johann Wolfgang Goethe University, Zeppelinallee 31, 60325 Frankfurt am Main, Germany;6. Institute of Environmental and Landscape Management, Szent István University, Gödöllö, Hungary;7. Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development, Agricultural University of Athens, Greece;8. MTT Agrifood Research Finland, Jokioinen, Finland |
| |
Abstract: | An aggregated farm-level index, the Agri-environmental Footprint Index (AFI), based on multiple criteria methods and representing a harmonised approach to evaluation of EU agri-environmental schemes is described. The Index uses a common framework for the design and evaluation of policy that can be customised to locally relevant agri-environmental issues and circumstances. Evaluation can be strictly policy-focused, or broader and more holistic in that context-relevant assessment criteria that are not necessarily considered in the evaluated policy can nevertheless be incorporated. The Index structure is flexible, and can respond to diverse local needs. The process of Index construction is interactive, engaging farmers and other relevant stakeholders in a transparent decision-making process that can ensure acceptance of the outcome, help to forge an improved understanding of local agri-environmental priorities and potentially increase awareness of the critical role of farmers in environmental management. The structure of the AFI facilitates post-evaluation analysis of relative performance in different dimensions of the agri-environment, permitting identification of current strengths and weaknesses, and enabling future improvement in policy design. Quantification of the environmental impact of agriculture beyond the stated aims of policy using an ‘unweighted’ form of the AFI has potential as the basis of an ongoing system of environmental audit within a specified agricultural context. |
| |
Keywords: | |
本文献已被 ScienceDirect 等数据库收录! |
|