Slovakia has a new program of subsidies to create fallow land belts in the middle of intensivly used fields. It works better than intended because +1000 farms joined the program this year (first year of the program) and left 8 800 hectares of arable land to nature.
Slovakia is a country with the largest average area of individual fields of arable land in the EU (12 hectares per field while EU average is under 4 hectares). In south Slovak lowlands you can see uninterrupted grain fields hundred or thousands hectares each. This leads to sharply decreased biodiversity in current times of highly intensive industrial farming.
Slovak agricultural ministry implemented new financial support system for farms in 2023. Farms get subsidies if they cut their fields into pieces max 50 hectares big (or 20 hectares in special sensitive areas). And they do it by creating belts of fallow land at least 12 meters broad. No chemicals can be used at these belts - in order to support insects and insect-eating birds living there.
If this program survives (or even if more farms join), it could bring back species like Great Bustard and support survival of red-footed falcons or partridges.
Source
Slovakia is a country with the largest average area of individual fields of arable land in the EU (12 hectares per field while EU average is under 4 hectares). In south Slovak lowlands you can see uninterrupted grain fields hundred or thousands hectares each. This leads to sharply decreased biodiversity in current times of highly intensive industrial farming.
Slovak agricultural ministry implemented new financial support system for farms in 2023. Farms get subsidies if they cut their fields into pieces max 50 hectares big (or 20 hectares in special sensitive areas). And they do it by creating belts of fallow land at least 12 meters broad. No chemicals can be used at these belts - in order to support insects and insect-eating birds living there.
If this program survives (or even if more farms join), it could bring back species like Great Bustard and support survival of red-footed falcons or partridges.
Source