Actions

Objectives 1 and 2:

Based on the establishment of a network of three pilot farms, with 90 hectares of demonstration farms of herbaceous crops under two soil management systems (conventional agriculture tillage vs. CA supported by PA) studies detailed below will be made to provide sufficient information to serve as a basis for technical and legislative decision-making.

Objective 3:

Based on studies of GHG emission reduction resulting from actions derived from the establishment of the first two objectives, on the web site disseminating this LIFE+ project, a space specializing in evaluating energy and CO2 emissions will be reserved for farms, with action protocols set up for this purpose, thus supplying information to farmers wishing to start CA and PA techniques.

Objectives 4 and 5:

To spread all the results produced from carrying out this LIFE + project, dissemination actions at different levels (practical, technical and scientific) will be accomplished. For practical applications of sustainable agricultural techniques, audiovisual material and diverse technical guides will be published, and technical training and countryside day courses orientated towards the training of farmers, agricultural company technicians and legislators will be held. Additionally, it is proposed to hold a congress at a European level to convey to the scientific and technical community the results of the project and thus promote more research in public and private centres.

Each of the actions described is specified as follows:

Management and monitoring of project
  • Technical management (direction and technical co-ordination, administrative handling of documents generated by members participating).
  • Monitoring and study of the evolution of different parameters considered, partial and final result evaluation, and studies on impact of dissemination campaign on the establishment degree of sustainable techniques in the project’s application area.
Preparatory actions

Each action carried out by its members will be integrated into setting up the project:

  • Establishment of techniques in demonstration farms: search for and selection of pilot farms, setting up of a protocol for the actions and planning of trials to be realized.
  • Studies prior to undertaking the actions contemplated in the project (technical and logistic needs, and infrastructures necessary for the development of communication and dissemination actions).
Project actions
  • Verification and demonstration of adaptive capacity of CA and PA to the expected climate change variations by the evaluation of grain yields and quality parameters, and of the moisture content in the soil (Objectives 1 and 2).
  • CO2 emission and energy evaluation of farms via a virtual management digital platform through a web page. (Objective 3).
  • Verification of the sink effect of CA, by the study of carbon sequester rates from laboratory analyses of the organic matter content evolution in soil samples taken at different depths (Objective 4).
  • Evaluation of medium to short term atmospheric CO2 emission reduction rates by in situ measurements in different farms with different soil management types by an infrared analyzer with a gas capture with camera and corrections of the measurements by atmospheric pressure (Objective 4).
  • Verification of GHG emission reduction coefficients associated with energy savings in CA and PA via an analysis of the energy requirements of mechanized operations in each of the systems studied (Objective 4).
Communication and dissemination actions (Objective 5):
  • Drawing up of a dissemination and communication plan (Project web page, Advertisement boards, Technical cards, Articles with a national dissemination in the CA Journal of the AEAC/SV, DVDs, Articles in scientific journals, Press conferences with agents from the sector, Press releases, Layman’s report).
  • After communication plan
  • Four training and dissemination courses at a technical level on the establishment of sustainable agriculture.
  • Nine In-field days for the spreading at a practical level of sustainable agricultural technique application.
  • European congress on CA and PA for result dissemination to the scientific and technical sphere at a transnational level.