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Farmer flexibility concerning future rotation planning is affected by the framing of climate predictions

Authors :
David A. Bohan
Matthieu Forster
Geoffroy Oudoire
Stephane A. P. Derocles
Caroline Gibert
Miranda S. Bane
Michael J. O. Pocock
University of Bristol [Bristol]
UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)
Solagro [TOULOUSE]
Agroécologie [Dijon]
Université de Bourgogne (UB)-AgroSup Dijon - Institut National Supérieur des Sciences Agronomiques, de l'Alimentation et de l'Environnement-Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté [COMUE] (UBFC)-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE)
Agro-écologie, Hydrogéochimie, Milieux et Ressources (AGHYLE)
UniLaSalle
ARVALIS - Institut du Végétal [Ouzouer le Marché] (ARVALIS)
ARVALIS - Institut du végétal [Paris]
Institut de Génétique, Environnement et Protection des Plantes (IGEPP)
Université de Rennes 1 (UR1)
Université de Rennes (UNIV-RENNES)-Université de Rennes (UNIV-RENNES)-AGROCAMPUS OUEST
Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE)
AgroSup Dijon - Institut National Supérieur des Sciences Agronomiques, de l'Alimentation et de l'Environnement
UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) [SCF0313]
Agence National de la Recherche (ANR) French National Research Agency (ANR)
European FACCE SURPLUS
European CommissionEuropean Commission European Commission Joint Research Centre
Joint Programming Initiative on Agriculture, Food Security and Climate Change (FACCE-JPI)
Association Solagro (Solagro)
Université de Rennes (UR)-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE)-INSTITUT AGRO Agrocampus Ouest
Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)
Source :
Climate Risk Management, Vol 34, Iss, Pp 100356-(2021), Climate Risk Management, Climate Risk Management, Elsevier, 2021, 34, ⟨10.1016/j.crm.2021.100356⟩, Climate Risk Management, 2021, 34, ⟨10.1016/j.crm.2021.100356⟩
Publication Year :
2021
Publisher :
Elsevier BV, 2021.

Abstract

Arable crops are typically grown in annual rotations. Diverse rotations can support ecosystem services, provide economic resilience and support adaptation to climate change. Our aim was to assess farmers' attitudes to planning and diversifying crop rotations, focusing on their responses in the face of contrasting climate viewpoints. We interviewed 75 farmers from four regions along a latitudinal gradient from the south of the UK to the south of France. We used a semi-structured questionnaire with face-to-face interviews and asked farmers to respond to two narrative viewpoints of climate change impacts: one viewpoint focused on opportunities, the other on constraints. We found in all four regions that farmers' use rotations, and the crops within rotations, to achieve their main objectives of financial stability and improved soil health. Most farmers (79-100% depending on region) said they had experienced climate change, and many (54-83%) had already implemented changes in their farming practices. We did not find a difference in these results based on latitude. However, farmers' self-reported outlook was mostly optimistic in southern UK and become progressively more pessimistic further south. Overall, most farmers predicted that they would diversify and lengthen rotations in response to climate change. However, when presented with a viewpoint of climate change impacts focusing on opportunities, more farmers were likely to diversify and lengthen, and fewer were likely to shorten rotations, compared to a viewpoint presenting constraints from these impacts. Crucially, here we show that the presentation of climate change affects the ways in which farmers predict how they will respond to climate change. Diversified rotations would align with multiple other economic and environmental benefits. Therefore, it is essential to consider the way in which climate change impacts are communicated, and the effect on farmers' behavior, when designing measures to support environmentally-sustainable adaptation to climate change.

Details

ISSN :
22120963
Volume :
34
Database :
OpenAIRE
Journal :
Climate Risk Management
Accession number :
edsair.doi.dedup.....33491f0688fdb866379f35b8e7733a5b
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crm.2021.100356