SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE, AQUACULTURE AND FORESTRY
TARGET ELEMENTS 1. Agriculture is sustainable
2. Aquaculture is sustainable 3. Forestry is sustainable
Figure 7.1. The European wild bird indicators
60 80 100 120
Population Index (2000 = 100)
All common birds (n=168 species) Common forest birds (n=34 species) Common farmland birds (n=39 species) 2002
2001
2000 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
The European wild bird indicators from the Pan-European Common Bird Monitoring Scheme, showing trends over 2000 - 2017 in abundance of species in all common bird species as well as common bird species specializing in forest and farmland habitats. The indicators are set against a 2000 benchmark.8
Status
trends, with the remainder indicating lack of infor-mation (Figure 7.2).17
The decline of agricultural biodiversity may, in some cases, compromise agricultural production.
For example, the decline in the abundance and diversity of pollinating species contributes to lower yields of pollinator-dependent crops (see also Aichi Target 14).18 The decline of species that are natural enemies of pests may lead to lower production and increased costs.19
With regard to the sustainable management of forests, actions noted in the sixth national reports include the decentralization of forest management, improving forest governance frameworks and capacity-building, promoting restoration, encour-aging forest certification, and updating and reviewing forestry licences. Some reports also note actions related to compensating or incentivizing landowners not to cut forests, and to promote silvicultural practices that also help with poverty alleviation.
Countries have provided comprehensive information on the status of forests as part of FAO’s Forest Resources Assessment (see also Aichi Target 5).20
Globally, about 1.15 billion hectares of forest is managed primarily for the production of wood and non-wood forest products, a relatively stable area since 1990. In addition, a decreasing amount, now about 750 million hectares, is designated for multiple use. The area of forest under long-term management plans has increased significantly to an estimated 2.05 billion hectares in 2020, equivalent to 54% of the forest area, an increase of around 10% since 2010.21
The area of forestry certified under the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) or the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) schemes has increased significantly within the last decade (by 28.5% during 2010-2019). This indicates a growing proportion of timber production for which there is third party verification of responsible
Alex Antoniadis / Unsplash
Figure 7.2. Status in biodiversity associated with different production systems, based on 91 country reports prepared for The State of the World’s Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture (2019).22
Irrigated crops (rice) Irrigated crops (other) Rainfed crops Mixed Livestock grassland-based Livestock landless Self-recruiting capture fisheries Culture-based fisheries Fed aquaculture Non-fed aquaculture Naturally regenerated forests Planted forests
Vertebrates Invertebrates Plants Micro-organisms
Decreasing Not known/reported
Stable Increasing
0% 25% 50% 75% 100% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%
67 Strategic Goal B: Target 7 – Sustainable agriculture, aquaculture and forestry
RELEVANT SDG TARGETS
forest management with regard to biodiversity conservation, as well as social, economic, cultural and ethical dimensions.23
Despite these advances, overall, biodiversity in forests continue to decline.24
The sixth national reports generally pay much less attention to aquaculture than to issues associated with forestry and agriculture.
Some countries noted actions to improve the management of aquaculture through technological innovations and modernization. Others note the promotion of certification schemes and environ-mental standards.
Aquaculture is the fastest growing sector of global food production. World aquaculture production attained an all-time high of 114.5 million tonnes live weight in 2018, although growth rates have slowed from the very rapid expansion of the first decade of this century.25
Aquaculture comprises a diversity of traditional and non-traditional production methods. It includes production of a broad variety of aquatic plants, seaweeds, algae, molluscs, crustaceans and echino-derms, as well as finfish. It takes place in inland, coastal and marine environments. Challenges for sustainability vary enormously, depending on, among other things, whether the produced species are fed or not, and the degree of integration with other agricultural activities. For example, traditional rice-fish practices remain important in countries such as China (Box 7.1) and are expanding. Overall, much inland-water aquaculture, constituting approx-imately two-thirds of the total world production, is considered sustainable.26
On the other hand, expansion of aquaculture into many coastal areas has caused large-scale loss and destruction of coastal wetlands (especially mangroves), and pollution of soil and water.27 Much mariculture relies, to a large extent, on capture fisheries for feed, with relatively low conversion
rates. However, in recent years the proportion of feed coming from capture fisheries has declined, and of this, more is coming from bycatch. Another positive practice is the increased use of marine bivalve filter feeders, sometimes grown in combi-nation with fed finfish species, helping to lower nutrient load and reduce water pollution.28 Other practices considered sustainable, and gaining increasing attention, are the farming of seaweed and microalgae as fish feeds, for human nutrition supplements, and other uses.29
While the expansion of aquaculture has generally outpaced the development of regulatory frame-works, an increasing number of countries report to FAO that they have legal frameworks, rising from 38 in 2011 to 91 in 2018. The FAO Committee on Fisheries has noted the increasing importance of sustainable aquaculture for food security and nutrition, and has recommended the development Sustainable Aquaculture Guidelines, complementing the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries.30
The majority of NBSAPs (81%) contain targets related to Aichi Biodiversity Target 7. Of the Parties that have assessed progress towards their national targets associated with Aichi Biodiversity Target 7, more than a third report that they are on track to reach (36%) or exceed (1%) them. Another 55%
report progress and only a few Parties (6%) report that they are making no progress towards the target or are moving away from reaching it (2%). However, only 13% of Parties with NBSAPs have national targets that are similar in scope and ambition to the Aichi Target. Many of the targets are related to sustainable management generally and do not specify agriculture or forestry. Few of the national targets address issues associated with aquaculture.
Only 8% of reporting parties have national targets of similar scope and ambition to Aichi Biodiversity Target 7 and are on track to meet them (see bar chart).
Target 2.4 - By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems….
Target 14.7 - By 2030, increase the economic benefits …… from the sustainable use of marine resources, including through
69 Strategic Goal B: Target 7 – Sustainable agriculture, aquaculture and forestry
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
The colour bars show the percentage of Parties reporting a given level of progress towards their national targets. (Blue: exceeds target; Green: on track; Yellow: some progress; Red: no change;
Purple: moving away from target). The intensity of the colour indicates alignment of national targets with the Aichi Target (Darker colours indicate close alignment).
Assessment of progress towards national targets
Box 7.1. Examples of national experiences and progress
ɠ China: Rice–fish co-culture has been maintained for over 1,200 years in Zhejiang province, south China, and has been designated a ‘globally important agricultural heritage system’.31 While rice production and yield stability are similar to rice monoculture, the co-culture requires 68% less pesticide and 24% less chemical fertilizer. The rice–fish co-culture is considered a sustainable form of agriculture because it maximizes the benefits of scarce land and water resources by using relatively few chemical inputs, by producing both staples and protein, as well as micronutrients, and by conserving biodiversity. The stability of the system is associated with positive interactions between rice and fish. On the one hand, fish can be biocontrol agents in rice, reducing insect pests, diseases, and weeds, especially rice planthoppers, rice sheath blight, and a variety of weeds. Conversely, rice benefits fish, by providing shade and reducing water temperature during the hot season.32
ɠ Cuba: The Integrated Tree Farms program established 1,342 tree farms covering an area of more than 63,000 hectares. This programme has helped to increase forest cover, particularly in watershed and catchment areas, increased soil productivity, improved food security, and created employment in rural areas.33
ɠ The Gambia: The country has established 458 community-managed forests, covering more than 31,000 hectares. Local communities have been given greater management authority and ownership of both land and trees. This reform has allowed for the decentralized management of forests, and has promoted the sustainable use of forest-based products and services.34
ɠ Guyana: While still in its infancy, aquaculture contributed more than $3 million to the economy, and has the potential to continue to grow. Measures to ensure sustainable growth include promoting the use of local fish species in aquaculture to reduce risk of introducing invasive alien species, promoting the use of by-products from seafood processing as feed for aquaculture, and providing training on aquaculture management.35
ɠ India: Zero budget natural farming (ZBNF) is an approach initiated by a grassroots movement, and now being scaled up across a number of Indian states. ‘Natural farming’ refers to a farming approach that emphasizes the importance of co-production of crops and animals so that synergistic effects of different parts of the system can be used, relying on crop treatments on-farm, and microorganisms or mycorrhizae to build fertility of the soil and reduce fungal infections. ‘Zero budget’ refers to financial inputs, as a way of overcoming the inability of many poor farmers to access improved seed and manufactured agrochemicals, and to avoid cycles of debt due to high production costs, high interest rates and volatile market prices. ZBNF is now one of the largest ‘experiments’ in agroecology in the world. In Karnataka, where it originated in 2002, over 100,000 farming households are
following ZBNF methods. In neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, by August 2019, 523,000 farmers had converted to ZBNF in 3,015 villages across 204,000 hectares. This is equivalent to 13% of the area of the state under productive agriculture (as defined by area sown to more than one crop). The long-term aim of the government of Andhra Pradesh is to roll out ZBNF to all six million farmers in the state by 2024. The programme is being extended nationally.36