Actions
The LIFE Biodiv’Paysanne will implement several actions in different categories:
– Actions A: preparatory actions, the development of management plans and/or action plans for the project.
– Actions B: land management of sites and new sites in order to extend biodiversity conservation on a larger scale.
– Actions C: specific conservation measures.
– Actions D: assessing the impact of actions on biodiversity.
– Actions E: the creation of communication tools, their use and disseminating the results.
– Actions F: the coordination and management of the project by CEN Occitanie.
See below the detailed list of actions put in place for the project.
This action will begin in 2021 and will include: – the development of management plans (CEOs) on the 25 sites not benefiting from such a document (sites recently acquired/contracted or that will be acquired/contracted as part of the project) according to the reference methodology of natural area managers in France. This will require an inventory of the situation by collecting data and their synthesis in order to have sufficient, relevant and up-to-date knowledge on the site and identify the main issues. – the revision of 13 MPs older than 5 years. This will require assessing the results achieved by managing the site, the effectiveness of the actions carried out, the adequacy of the means and an update of the inventory (additional inventories) to re-examine the challenges.
This preparatory action will make it possible to co-construct a method for diagnosing agricultural holdings that will combine the three complementary approaches of beneficiaries (agronomists, natural area managers and landowners). Using indicators, it will be possible to analyse the integration of biodiversity at level of the farm, the farmers’ management unit, to understand it as an component of the system: in the practice of agrobiodiversity, management of chemical inputs, soil, livestock and water; in landscaping or agroecological infrastructure and in farmers’ ownership of this factor of production. This method will be implemented on 60 farms under Action C4.
The implementation of the action will be divided into 4 sub-actions :
– A2.1: State of the art of tools, indicators, methods for evaluating the consideration of biodiversity and measures in favour of biodiversity
– A2.2: Co-construction of the cross-diagnostic tool
– A2.3: Establishment of 2 local steering committees
– A2.4 :Selection of the network of 60 farms
This action prepares the setting up of the non-profit agricultural operating company (SCEA) as part of the C3 action. The project provides for :
– A3.1: Consolidating the business plan drawn up in 2020 during the proposal phase in order to establish the financial credibility of the structure and refine operational programming.
– A3.2: Produce the administrative documents necessary for the legal creation of the SCEA.
– A3.3: Develop a prototype hybrid forestry trailer (animal traction and light tractor type quad) making it possible to mechanise management work in order to make it more efficient while greatly limiting the impact on the environment.
This action consists in the development of a decision support tool for the land management approach of the Occitanie CENs within the framework of LIFE Biodiv’Paysanne. It will take the form of a regional map detailing the priority intervention areas for implementing action B1.
This action will test the development of a multi-site management plan on 12 site networks, in accordance with the reference methodology for drafting natural area management plans in France. These site networks cover 57 sites representing an area of 9,475ha including multi-site MPs from 14ha to 6,677ha. These multi-site MPs will include an analysis of the local and socio-economic context, an analysis of ecological issues (inventories, mapping of natural habitats, etc.), an evaluation of the issues, the definition of long-term and operational objectives, the development of a management action programme, as well as their evaluation. Any restoration or management action implemented on these sites (C1 & C2 actions) will be done with reference to and will result from these management plans.
This action will enable the CENs to acquire or manage the use of 2,700 new hectares by means of contractual agreements, which represents a 10% increase in the surface area of the network of managed sites of the project and contributes to the construction of a coherent network of protected areas in Occitanie. They will be managed in a sustainable manner and will benefit from actions to restore degraded ecosystems (on 25% of the 2,700ha, or 675ha), with a view to improving the conservation status of habitats or species of community interest. To this end, the CENs will proceed with (A) the acquisition of 250 ha of land with a high ecological and restoration potential as identified in the A4 preparatory action framework and (B) will use other land management and use schemes for 2,450 ha.
This action will consist of the implementation of restoration works to restore 992ha, including 598ha of habitats of community interest, in line with existing MPs or those developed in A1 or A5. The CENs will use different types of work categorised into four main types of intervention:
– C1.1: Ecological engineering
– C1.2: Hydraulic engineering
– C1.3 : Génie mécanique
– C1.4: Plant engineering
This concrete management action will allow the establishment or extension of pasture on 82 sites and, through it, improve the state of conservation of 730ha of habitats. It will lead to the installation of at least 40 km of fences and 7 containment parks.
This action consists of creating a commercial agricultural operation, in the form of a non-profit agricultural operating company (SCEA). The aspect on which we innovate is that this structure will neither cultivate nor breed domestic species aimed at production. Its economic model is built on the production of goods and services focussed on the enhancement and restoration of wild biodiversity. For these purposes, no pesticide will be used.
It will be based on 3 axes :
– C3.1: Creation and structuring of the SCEA
– C3.2: Development of services related to ecological restoration and the enhancement of the products derived from it.
– C3.3: Development of high environmental quality ecosystem enhancement activities
This action is dedicated to the implementation of cross-diagnosis, following the methodology developed in the framework of action A2, on the network of 60 farms selected in action A2. The diagnostics will allow the collection of biological, socio-economic and agronomic data and their analysis as well as the formulation of recommendations to improve biodiversity, its functionality and other environmental components at the farm level.
The action will be articulated as follows :
– C4.1: The initial diagnosis
– C4.2: Development of recommendations through leaflets for 40 farms or management plan for 20 pilot farms
– C4.3 : The final diagnosis
This action aims to implement restoration actions and changes in practices at the scale of the useful agricultural area (UAA) of 20 pilot farms (chosen in A2), as planned in the management plans of each of these farms (MPs) co-developed under Action C4. It will consist of supporting each farmer technically, scientifically and administratively, to ensure the proper implementation of operational programming. It will allow the restoration of areas with high biodiversity and their preservation in a sustainable manner, because they are integrated into the uses and production system of the farm as a whole.
This action consists of the implementation of a specific mechanism to monitor the effects of management and restoration actions planned under the LIFE Biodiv’Paysanne on biodiversity. It will consist of a set of indicators deployed and monitored on a network of test sites representative of the different biogeographical contexts of Occitanie (CEN sites and farms) and on which different types of actions will be programmed. The monitoring system will focus only on the so-called “open” environments, because the majority of management/restoration actions will concern herbaceous or heathland habitats in the process of closure, habitats that are also concerned or even dependent on agricultural and/or agro-pastoral practices to preserve or restore their good state of conservation. This action will require the establishment of a working group from the third quarter of 2021 bringing together two representatives of CEN.
O, a representative each from CEN Ariège and CBNPMP. It is divided into 4 sub-actions:
– D1.1: Development of the sampling plan
– D1.2:Wildlife monitoring
– D1.3: Floristic monitoring
– D1.4: Data analysis
This action will assess the impact of the project on ecosystem services by focusing more specifically on three of them:
– To what extent has the project influenced the potential for receiving (feeding habitats) pollinating insects and therefore the pollination service? (regulation service)
– What improvements to the water quantity and quality regulation service has the project made? (regulation and production service)
– To what extent has the project participated in the decomposition and recycling of organic matter through the implementation of good agricultural practices (reduction of pest control treatments, optimisation of grazing schedules, etc.)? (support service)
This project proposes a local and territorial approach. It is a project to mobilise stakeholders as close as possible to the land and the agricultural profession, thanks to strong and lasting synergy between natural space managers and structures defending small-scale agriculture at a regional level. The socio-economic impact of the project and its actions on the territory is essential to allow :
-good acceptance of the project by local actors and the population,
– justification of the cost/effectiveness of the actions,
– an appropriation of the practices by the project’s farming partners and therefore the sustainability of the restoration actions implemented on their farms,
– to arouse an interest among other farmers and agricultural structures with a view to replicability and spin-off,
– other actors to find arguments to facilitate the implementation of similar actions by highlighting an added economic value.
This action will allow the creation of 8 tools, communication media throughout the project :
– Project website
– Information panels in strategic locations
– Layman’s report
– Communication brochures on the project
– kakemonos presentation of the project and three flagship actions
– Photographic exhibition
– Online videoclip
– Documentary film
This communication action is aimed more specifically at the general public: walkers using the CEN sites, consumers of the farm products targeted by actions C4 and C5, consumers of partner networks, citizens, etc. It is based on the tools created in action E1. The use of several broadcasting channels (internet, media including TV, cinemas, local events…) will make it possible to multiply the dissemination of information. The project will also expand by relying on other partner networks such as the Jardins de Cocagne (122 farms nationwide and more than 100,000 consumers).
The action will focus on:
– Communication via the media
– The organisation of local events for the general public
This communication action targets local actors through elected officials and agents of local authorities and the State and on a broader scale public policy makers and community networks. It builds on the tools created in action E1. It revolves around:
It revolves around:
– Information and training of elected officials
– The project’s contribution to public policies
This action therefore proposes information and training actions for the transmission of results to agricultural actors and natural area managers, as well as the creation of tools to promote their replicability and the transferability of results.
It revolves around:
– E4.1: dissemination of results via information and training
– A4.2: drafting the publication of technical tools to promote replication and transferability
This action provides for the identification of projects, programmes and actors related to the issues addressed in this LIFE programme at the French and European level, with many exchanges with these programmes and their promoters and partners, to initiate new collaborations and to test the replicability of actions. Networking on a national and European scale requires a significant human investment, capable of guaranteeing a solid communication and dissemination strategy.
It revolves around:
– E5.1: Networking with other LIFE projects-
– E5.2: Networking with other non-LIFE projects
– E5.3: A time of exchange dedicated to the replicability of the project
– E5.4: Participation in national and international events
F1.1: CEN O will ensure the sound management of the project and will be responsible for administrative, technical and financial monitoring and monitoring of actions in order to achieve the set objectives.
F1.2: An external financial audit will be carried out by a service provider independent of CEN O and all associated beneficiaries. In accordance with the rules in force, the audit will concern only CEN O, the only beneficiary likely to apply for an EU grant of more than €750,000. It will make it possible to certify for all expenses the compliance with national legislation and French accounting rules and the compliance of all expenses incurred with the general conditions of the “Model LIFE Grant Agreement”. It will be carried out in two phases (expenses 2021-2022 and 2023-2027).
he smooth running of the project requires that each of the associated beneficiaries benefits from time dedicated to the management of the project (participation in technical and steering committees, working groups, financial and technical reporting, etc.) in addition to the time dedicated to the implementation of each of the actions.
A Post-LIFE Plan will be drawn up at the end of the project in order to plan how the actions will continue after the project, both technically and financially. This document will serve as a roadmap after June 2027 for beneficiaries and the main actors involved in the project.
