30
M. García-Martín et al.
This East–West dichotomy is particularly recognisable in changes to cropland
systems, with fairly constant cropland area but stable or increasing land management intensity in the West, partly due to the strategic support from the EU’s Common
Agricultural Policy (CAP) (Kuemmerle et al. 2016); and abandonment in the East
(Kuemmerle et al. 2016; Plieninger et al. 2016; Prishchepov et al. 2012). However,
there are also regional differences on how institutional and political drivers have
affected landscape change patterns. For example, national policies during Soviet
times led to agricultural expansion in some areas (e.g. Hungary) and to abandonment of agriculture in others (e.g. Romania) (Munteanu et al. 2014). Prishchepov
et al. (2012) observed higher abandonment rates in countries with changing or inadequately established institutions designed to regulate land use changes (e.g. Latvia,
Lithuania and Russia).
Since the entry of Eastern countries into the EU starting in 2004, the situation has
changed. Jepsen et al. (2015) identified a new regime beginning in the 1990s all over
Europe driven by environmental awareness of the impact of agricultural production,
triggering agro-environmental policies that have subsequently had an impact on land
use and land cover across Europe.
Political and institutional drivers are also important explanatory factors of the
prevalent land cover stability observed especially in Western Europe. Land use policies frequently hinder drastic changes in landscapes across the EU, for example by
providing economic support to farmers in less favoured areas (Levers et al. 2015).
The CAP plays a crucial role in this stability, with the decoupling of CAP payments
regarded to be an important element for preserving extensive grazing systems that
otherwise would be abandoned (Levers et al. 2015). However, the CAP has also had
the opposite effect in some places, leading to land abandonment (Bürgi et al. 2017)
and changes in land use when the EU implemented eligibility criteria for payments
based on a quota system.
2.4.2 Economic, Technological and Cultural Drivers
of Change
Of the driving factors that shape society as a whole, urbanisation in particular appears
to be a prominent factor triggering landscape change (Bürgi et al. 2017). In Europe,
almost 75% of the population nowadays live in urban areas (Eurostat 2016), which
typically have expanded at the expense of agricultural land. The rural exodus due to
diminishing income opportunities in marginal areas in contrast to increasing opportunities in urban areas is one of the most recurrent sociocultural drivers explaining
land abandonment (Levers et al. 2015). Moreover, with an increasingly urban society,
new uses such as recreation activities have emerged around urban areas that can
compete with agriculture and forestry activities (van Vliet et al. 2015). Urbanisation
is typically accompanied by an increased purchasing power and higher demand for
M. García-Martín et al.
This East–West dichotomy is particularly recognisable in changes to cropland
systems, with fairly constant cropland area but stable or increasing land management intensity in the West, partly due to the strategic support from the EU’s Common
Agricultural Policy (CAP) (Kuemmerle et al. 2016); and abandonment in the East
(Kuemmerle et al. 2016; Plieninger et al. 2016; Prishchepov et al. 2012). However,
there are also regional differences on how institutional and political drivers have
affected landscape change patterns. For example, national policies during Soviet
times led to agricultural expansion in some areas (e.g. Hungary) and to abandonment of agriculture in others (e.g. Romania) (Munteanu et al. 2014). Prishchepov
et al. (2012) observed higher abandonment rates in countries with changing or inadequately established institutions designed to regulate land use changes (e.g. Latvia,
Lithuania and Russia).
Since the entry of Eastern countries into the EU starting in 2004, the situation has
changed. Jepsen et al. (2015) identified a new regime beginning in the 1990s all over
Europe driven by environmental awareness of the impact of agricultural production,
triggering agro-environmental policies that have subsequently had an impact on land
use and land cover across Europe.
Political and institutional drivers are also important explanatory factors of the
prevalent land cover stability observed especially in Western Europe. Land use policies frequently hinder drastic changes in landscapes across the EU, for example by
providing economic support to farmers in less favoured areas (Levers et al. 2015).
The CAP plays a crucial role in this stability, with the decoupling of CAP payments
regarded to be an important element for preserving extensive grazing systems that
otherwise would be abandoned (Levers et al. 2015). However, the CAP has also had
the opposite effect in some places, leading to land abandonment (Bürgi et al. 2017)
and changes in land use when the EU implemented eligibility criteria for payments
based on a quota system.
2.4.2 Economic, Technological and Cultural Drivers
of Change
Of the driving factors that shape society as a whole, urbanisation in particular appears
to be a prominent factor triggering landscape change (Bürgi et al. 2017). In Europe,
almost 75% of the population nowadays live in urban areas (Eurostat 2016), which
typically have expanded at the expense of agricultural land. The rural exodus due to
diminishing income opportunities in marginal areas in contrast to increasing opportunities in urban areas is one of the most recurrent sociocultural drivers explaining
land abandonment (Levers et al. 2015). Moreover, with an increasingly urban society,
new uses such as recreation activities have emerged around urban areas that can
compete with agriculture and forestry activities (van Vliet et al. 2015). Urbanisation
is typically accompanied by an increased purchasing power and higher demand for