Countryside stewardship GHG emissions
AERU have undertaken several projects that have explored greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration associated with the implementation of different options that are available within the UK’s Countryside Stewardship scheme (including all the previous schemes which have had slightly different names). There have been five projects which have been undertaken for Natural England, Defra and the National Trust. Each of these are described below.
2024 to 2024: Review and update carbon storage in agri-environment scheme options
The carbon storage potential of agri-environment schemes will be reviewed and updated. Each agri-environment scenario will be reviewed and where relevant, improved emission factors applied.
2017 to 2020: Establishing a field-based evidence base for the impact of agri-environment options on soil carbon and climate change mitigation (Ref. RP04176/Framework 24931)
AERU were contracted by Natural England to update the findings of previous work (see below) which examined the climate change mitigation effects (through emission reduction and carbon sequestration) of the former Environmental Stewardship scheme (2005-2014), in the context of the Countryside Stewardship scheme launched in 2015. Initially this work focused on a desk-based study to update the calculations which underpinned the earlier work, using both the latest scientific understanding and updated scenarios which encompass the options now available, so as to calculate revised emission figures for the Countryside Stewardship scheme as a whole, and the individual options within it. Subsequently, this work was then ‘ground-truthed’, using the analysis of samples taken in the field to determine any deviation from the results forecast by the previous studies, and to further refine the models to be used going into the future.
2012 to 2013: Measuring the extent to which greenhouse gas emission savings achieved by Environmental Stewardship are displaced (Ref. NECR121)
Environmental Stewardship (ES) is an agri-environment scheme that provides funding to farmers and other land managers in England to deliver effective environmental management on their land. The scheme is a part of the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) which implements the EU Rural Development Regulation (RDR) and Pillar 2 of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). The Programme is jointly funded by the EU through the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and the UK Government. Environmental Stewardship is open to all farmers and land managers across England, providing farmers and land managers with a financial incentive that supports and rewards them, through voluntary management agreements, for looking after England’s countryside and its wildlife, landscapes, historic features and natural resources (soils and water) and for providing new opportunities for public access. Applicants for an ES agreement select specific management activities from a wide range of available options. Each option carries a point score and a minimum total score must be achieved for scheme eligibility. Many of the available options offer opportunities for mitigating the effects of climate change either by reducing greenhouse gas emissions or by increasing carbon sequestration.
Natural England required a study to be undertaken to investigate how farmers respond to the uptake of options that reduce GHG emissions by reducing inputs or alternative land management strategies. Research questions included: Do farmers intensify elsewhere or improve the efficiency of their input use? Does uptake of these options cause a noticeable reduction in production levels, giving rise to the potential for emissions displacement? These questions were addressed through the assessment of a few farm case studies that included land entered into priority greenhouse gas mitigation Environmental Stewardship option agreements.
2011 to 2011: Climate Change: Calculation of mitigation potential of new ELS and UELS options. Follow-up to the outputs of BD2302 (Ref. BD5007)
Environmental Stewardship was introduced to build on the already successful Environmentally Sensitive Areas (ESA) scheme and the Countryside Stewardship Scheme (CSS). Although primarily engaged with resource protection such as soil and water and the enhancement of biodiversity, the alterations in land use that are undertaken during the implementation of ES options do have implications for climate change. The precursor to this project: BD2302 focused on greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation within Environmental Stewardship (ES) – establishing the potential for delivery of climate change mitigation under the scheme. However, sufficient time had now elapsed to warrant a review of this work to ensure that the scenarios continue to be robust and that the most up-to-date parameters are incorporated within the calculations. In addition, new options had been introduced to ES (in the main UELS options) which were not included in the original work.
2010 to 2011: A land carbon management plan for the Wallington estate
The National Trust sought to enter the majority of tenanted farms on the Wallington Estate, Northumberland into Higher Level Stewardship (HLS) agreements. The agreements aim to enhance biodiversity; the historic environment; access; and landscape features, however the impact on soil organic carbon (SOC) and biomass carbon (C) is also of importance. Multiple options may be available to achieve each aim with differing impacts on SOC and biomass C. The project identified land management options that achieve each primary objective (enhance biodiversity; the historic environment; access; and landscape features) but also maximised C without increasing emissions of other greenhouse gases (GHGs). An inventory of potential C that may be sequestered through introduction of HLS on The Wallington Estate has been undertaken, and the impact on other greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions indicated with a qualitative scoring system. The current SOC content of individual tenancies on the Estate, measured by the University of Durham (Bell and Worrall, 2009), has been used as a baseline against which any predicted change in C by implementing those HLS options most suited to each individual tenancy, could be compared. The C sequestration capacity of HLS options draws on previous work for Defra project BD2302 (see below). Options with the greatest potential were subject to further analysis to calculate their impact after a period of 20 years. A programme of future site monitoring has been devised to ascertain the effectiveness of selected options relative to the predicted calculations. A preliminary ‘blueprint’ produced step-by-step guidance to allow the selection of relevant HLS options on other National Trust estates.
2006 to 2007: Current and potential climate change mitigation effects of Environmental Stewardship (Ref. BD2302)
Agri-environment schemes in England can provide payments to land managers to protect and / or enhance the environment. Environmental Stewardship (ES), the agri-environment scheme in England, which was launched in March 2005, has three elements: the Entry Level, Higher Level and Organic Entry Level Schemes. The main scheme objectives are to improve water quality and reduce soil erosion, enhance farmland wildlife, maintain and enhance landscape character, and protect the historic environment. The change in land use and land management that an agreement specifies, may also have an impact on UK greenhouse gas emissions and climate change.
This Defra funded research project adopted a Life-Cycle Assessment approach to quantify net GHG emissions for each management option and calculated the Global Warming Potential overall. It quantified the impact on UK GHG emissions (excluding the potential impact of a displacement of production overseas), both on-farm and including indirect emissions, and changes in carbon sequestration. It suggests where management of an option may be modified to minimise emissions further, without a compromise of their primary objective. Options with the greatest potential to reduce emissions include the creation of grass strips on cultivated land or improved grassland. This decrease arose from two mechanisms, a reduction in the source of emissions and an increase in the carbon stored within the land when at equilibrium either as soil organic carbon or biomass. Higher Level Stewardship has an important role in the preservation of existing soil carbon stores and mitigation of CO2 emissions from drained peat habitats such as bogs or fenland.
Publications
- Warner, D.J., Tzilivakis, J., Green, A. and
Lewis, K.A. (2020). Establishing a field-based evidence base for the impact
of agri-environment options on soil carbon and climate change mitigation – phase
1. Final Report. Work package number: ECM50416. Evidence Programme Reference
number: RP04176. Natural England.
- Warner, D.J., Tzilivakis, J., Green, A. and
Lewis, K.A. (2020). Establishing a field-based evidence base for the impact
of agri-environment options on soil carbon and climate change mitigation – phase
2. Final Report. Work package number: ECM50416. Evidence Programme Reference
number: RP04176. Natural England.
- Warner, D.J., Tzilivakis, J., Green, A.,
Charlton, D. & Lewis, K.A. (2019). Determining the climate change mitigation
potential of Countryside Stewardship. World Journal of Agriculture and Soil
Science Change, 1(2), DOI
- Warner, D.,
Tzilivakis, J., Green, A. & Lewis, K. (2017). Prioritising agri-environment
options for greenhouse gas mitigation. International Journal of Climate
Change Strategies and Management, 9(1): 104-122. DOI
- Warner, D.J.,
Green, A., Tzilivakis, J., & Lewis, K.A. (2014). Agricultural Greenhouse Gas
Emissions Reduced by Agri-Environment Schemes on Improved Grassland Grazed by
Intensive Beef Cattle. In: M. Hassouna & N. Guingand (Eds.), Emission of Gas
and Dust from Livestock. (pp. 237-240). RMT Élevage et Environnement, Le
Rheu, France.
- Warner, D.J.,
Tzilivakis, J., Green, A., Slater, R.I.J. & Lewis, K.A. (2013). Measuring the
Extent to Which Greenhouse Gas Emission Savings Achieved by Environmental
Stewardship are Displaced On-farm - Natural England Report NECR121. Natural
England, York, UK.
- Warner, D.J.,
Green, A., Tzilivakis, J., & Lewis, K.A. (2011) A revisit to previous research into the current and potential
climate change mitigation effects of environmental stewardship. Final report for Defra project BD5007.
- Warner, D.J., Green, A., Tzilivakis, J., & Lewis, K.A. (2007) Research into the current and potential climate change mitigation impacts of
environmental stewardship. Final report for Defra project BD2302.
Contact
Dr Doug Warner
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