Strategic deployment of riparian buffers and windbreaks in Europe can co-deliver biomass and environmental benefits
Journal article, 2021

Deployment of riparian buffers and windbreaks can effectively reduce nitrogen emissions to water and soil loss by wind erosion in Europe, according to analyses of three implementation scenarios. Within the scope of the new Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union, in coherence with other EU policies, new incentives are developed for farmers to deploy practices that are beneficial for climate, water, soil, air, and biodiversity. Such practices include establishment of multifunctional biomass production systems, designed to reduce environmental impacts while providing biomass for food, feed, bioenergy, and other biobased products. Here, we model three scenarios of large-scale deployment for two such systems, riparian buffers and windbreaks, across over 81,000 landscapes in Europe, and quantify the corresponding areas, biomass output, and environmental benefits. The results show that these systems can effectively reduce nitrogen emissions to water and soil loss by wind erosion, while simultaneously providing substantial environmental co-benefits, having limited negative effects on current agricultural production. This kind of beneficial land-use change using strategic perennialization is important for meeting environmental objectives while advancing towards a sustainable bioeconomy.

Author

Oskar Englund

Mid Sweden University

Englund GeoLab

Pal Borjesson

Lund University

Blas Mola-Yudego

University of Eastern Finland

Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU)

Göran Berndes

Chalmers, Space, Earth and Environment, Physical Resource Theory

Ioannis Dimitriou

Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU)

Christel Cederberg

Chalmers, Space, Earth and Environment, Physical Resource Theory

Nicolae Scarlat

European Commission (EC)

Communications Earth and Environment

26624435 (eISSN)

Vol. 2 1 176

Subject Categories

Environmental Sciences related to Agriculture and Land-use

Other Environmental Engineering

Energy Systems

DOI

10.1038/s43247-021-00247-y

More information

Latest update

1/3/2024 9