Oligotrophic grasslands and their context in intensification

Abstract

The concept of sustainability applied to agriculture developed mainly as a result of growing awareness of negative impacts of intensive farming systems on the environment and the quality of life of rural and neighboring communities. For grassland systems, a combination of intensively and extensively management plots may give more favorable overall results than the management of the whole area at a medium intensity. The reduction of fertilizing and soil cultivation intensity led to a general reduction of environmental impacts, while the ban of certain classes of pesticides reduced ecotoxicity potentials and increased biodiversity potentials, while leading to a higher energy demand and higher nutrient losses per product unit.