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PRIMA Pillar 2: Sustainable farming systems under Med environmental constraints - prioritisation of
targets, objectives and activities
Throughout past decades, Mediterranean ecosystems experienced the coexistence of abandoned areas or
areas of agricultural decline together with areas of overexploitation of natural resources, erosion and
pollution. This pillar aims to develop Mediterranean sustainable production systems in agriculture,
aquaculture and fisheries, through a better management of natural resources and the adoption of
solutions
that can simultaneously increase ecosystem productivity and resilience.
The vulnerability of Mediterranean ecosystems has led to specific problems due to unsustainable farming,
such as soil erosion and runoff, overexploitation of natural plant cover, loss of fertility of agricultural land,
soil salinization and underground water contamination and pollution. Increase in food production is linked
to the capacity of Mediterranean farming systems to better manage and valorise natural resources. Some of
these aspects are mainly related to water management and will be covered in Pillar 1,
however other issues
should be addressed to improve farming systems in order to be more productive, resilient to climatic
variability and extreme events, resistant to increasing pests and diseases, and able to cope with climate
change. It is well-established that climate change will push the limits of climatic zones North and that
solutions need to be found to adapt agricultural practices to increases in temperature, drought and extreme
events. This is clearly a challenge that requires the pooling of resources, knowledge and capacities into
common programmes.
1.
In the whole Mediterranean area, vulnerability of the ecosystems and increasing climatic stresses, in
particular climate variability, lead to the need to develop
production systems able to cope with
climate risk and uncertainty. Rusticity and flexibility of the different components and the whole are
major factors of resilience of the systems and are required to improve their competitiveness and
sustainability. Therefore, we need to improve simultaneously the productivity of agricultural systems
and their sustainability and resilience. From this perspective, research is needed to i) better
understand how plants adapt to environmental constraints and why certain Mediterranean crop
varieties are tolerant to abiotic and biotic single or multiple stresses, such as aridity, high evaporative
demand and multiple summer stresses, warm winters, salinity, etc.., with a primary focus on the
genotype-environment interactions, ii) create new varieties of genotypes and cropping systems
suited to Mediterranean conditions in a changing environmental context iii) develop ecophysiological
and agronomical approaches of farming operations at plot, farm and landscape levels to optimize
water and other inputs (fertilizers, pesticides) in rainfed and irrigated agriculture;
2.
Mediterranean biodiversity is recognized as one of the richest in the world, however a very small
part is valorised in agriculture; production systems are often overspecialised and do not take into
account the diversity of breeds or varieties. The richness of Mediterranean biodiversity is an asset
that can be used to restore or develop new varieties and hybrids, crops and breeds, but that requires
the development of a long-term programme to share resources and objectives. Such programmes
should enable the spontaneous and domesticated biological diversity in Mediterranean crops and
livestock production systems to be taken advantage of. Species or farming practices that are
currently used in the southern Mediterranean countries could be relevant for other locations, namely
in the Northern shore, to adapt agriculture to the changing climatic conditions. Better integration of
environmental natural regulation of biotic and abiotic stresses into farming systems, as promoted by
the “agroecology” concept, could largely be developed in the Mediterranean but requires research
and innovation to take into account specific Mediterranean ecosystem assets and vulnerabilities, and
to develop solutions that are site-specific and could be adopted
by different types of farmers;
3.
The Mediterranean is a hotspot not just for biodiversity but also for the
emergence of animal and
plant pests and diseases. The fragile ecosystem, circulation and concentration of human and animal
populations, and the effects of climate change are all factors that promote the persistence of
diseases, the resurgence of epidemics and the emergence of new pathogens. Epidemics emerging in
the Mediterranean Zone and moving North to Europe are a common problem that transcends
national frontiers (Examples
Xylella fastidiosa,
Bamisia Tabaci, Brucellosis, Nile Valley Fever, etc.).