The LIFE Biodiv’Paysanne project

A project to preserve the natural habitats of the Occitanie region, along with their biodiversity and ecosystems, running until 2027, the LIFE Biodiv’Paysanne project forms part of nationwide efforts to safeguard the environment. It is coordinated by the Conservatoire d’espaces naturels d’Occitanie (CEN Occitanie), a nature conservation organisation (photo: Partners’ meeting at Les Natalys farm (34) © Mathilde Cassée, CEN Occitanie).

Whilst we have previously featured articles on LIFE Terra Musica, the French Biodiversity Agency, and La Nat’mobile, the travelling museum run by the Syndicat mixte des gorges du Gardon, the LIFE Biodiv’Paysanne project – the key points of which are outlined below – completes our series on natural habitats.

Biodiversity conservation measures

“Through this project, the Occitanie Conservatory of Natural Areas, the Ana–Ariège Conservatory of Natural Areas and the Federation of CENs are securing substantial resources to strengthen and manage the network of protected natural sites – the very core of the CENs’ work – across the whole of Occitanie. As a result, more than 25,000 ha and 300 sites will benefit directly or indirectly from conservation measures aimed at protecting species or habitats of particular concern, to which will be added more than 2,700 ha of new sites, acquired or covered by management agreements during the project. Multi-site management plans will also be trialled, covering 9,500 hectares,” explains the project coordinator, Mélanie Némoz (photo: Acquisition of part of the Font del Gréou site (11) © Sylvain Nicolas, CEN Occitanie).

The objectives? To analyse ecological challenges at a relevant scale; to improve the functionality of the network of sites; and to pool resources and foster cooperation between stakeholders.

Among the species to be protected

Among the many species to be protected, some are on the Red List. “23 per cent of Odonata species (dragonflies and damselflies) and Rhopalocera species (butterflies) are considered to be at risk of extinction, compared with 14 per cent and 6.7 per cent respectively at national level.” These species are under threat due to changes in land use and urbanisation practices such as drainage works. “The area covered by natural meadows, grasslands and pastures has thus fallen by 50 per cent in 40 years. Yet these habitats are home to an exceptional wealth of plant and animal species and facilitate constant and remarkable exchanges between different biogeographical regions.” (Click on the link to find out more about threatened and protected species and the action plans (APs)  initiated by the Occitanie Conservatory of Natural Areas (including the Bonelli’s eagle, the Pyrenean desman, the ocellated lizard, Capaccini’s bat, the little tern, the Bistort Pearl-bordered Fritillary… as well as the Aveyron Ophrys, the Pubescent Marsilea, the Doubtful Gladiolus, and Lapeyrouse’s Pansy…).

The impact of human activity

Whilst the artificialisation and fragmentation of habitats (livestock farming, market gardening, arable farming, residential areas) have a significant impact on natural environments, it is important to recognise the importance of their biodiversity and conservation (‘floral heritage – protection of pollination in particular, and fauna – 80 species – across 24 different habitats”), and to understand these changes and manage them as effectively as possible, by monitoring, amongst other things, water quality, the decomposition and recycling of organic matter…

Supporting the region’s agroecological transition

‘The project will support 60 farms in better integrating biodiversity into their agricultural operations: opportunities for discussion to address the social dimension…’

Economic and agronomic assessment of the farm; ecological survey of biodiversity and agroecological infrastructure on site; recommendations in the form of a summary document setting out specific actions to increase the farm’s potential for supporting biodiversity” (photo: Presentation of the assessment findings for the Domaine de Ribonnet (31) © Mélanie Némoz, CEN Occitanie).

Farmers, growers and other stakeholders working towards the agroecological transition are supported by ‘competent and complementary partners such as Solagro (which ‘offers a unique approach in which support for project delivery (studies and project management assistance), foresight, training and research and development feed into and enrich one another) the regional associations Terre de Liens Midi-Pyrénées (which, in the region, has 2,000 ha of preserved land, 39 farms and 80 Terre de Liens farmers, as well as 200 prospective farmers and retiring farmers, and 2,000 committed citizens), and the National Botanical Conservatory of the Pyrenees and Midi-Pyrénées, which provides expertise and knowledge on local wild seeds’.

Agricultural Cooperative dedicated to the preservation of biodiversity: SCEA Biodiv’Paysanne

The Biodiv’Paysanne Agricultural Cooperative (SCEA) forms an integral part of the project and enables the testing of an agricultural model dedicated to the preservation of biodiversity and the enhancement of natural resources.

Apart from its leading role in ‘the restoration of plots and grassland habitats with high ecological potential, and the sale of seed’, the SCEA is also ‘self-sufficient in mowing, swathing and baling, with the aim of creating a natural hay supply chain of agroecological interest’ (photo: Sowing trial for the restoration of grasslands using local wild seeds © Annabelle Pons).

The SCEA is also heavily involved in encouraging “farmers and agricultural organisations to exchange and pass on their expertise on the seed, hay and source-plot conservation sectors” and in encouraging “those involved in animal-drawn transport”—a discipline that has been returning to the forefront for many years—to do the same.

An extraordinary human endeavour that unites and brings people together

Staff, volunteers, farmers and many other contributors are joining forces to continue to ‘enjoy the incredible landscapes and species that nature offers within the Occitanie region, ranked among the richest in mainland France’.

Terms to be familiar with

As in any organisation, it is useful to recognise and understand the various terms and acronyms. For example, the term ‘site’ refers to an area that will be subject to management, restoration or agroecological transition measures with a view to preserving biodiversity; ‘natural areas’ or ‘natural habitats’ refer to the ‘protected natural areas’ of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which brings together, within a unique partnership, 2 ministries, 7 public bodies, 8 local authorities, 64 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and 300 experts), which is defined as ‘a clearly defined, recognised, dedicated and managed geographical area, through any effective means, legal or otherwise, to ensure the long-term conservation of nature as well as the associated ecosystem services and cultural values’.

As for ‘agroecological infrastructure’, this refers to fixed landscape features and semi-natural habitats (such as hedgerows, trees, copses, etc.) in the vicinity of cultivated plots. ‘Wetlands’, according to the Environment Code, are defined as ‘land, whether cultivated or not, that is usually flooded or saturated with fresh, salt or brackish water, either permanently or temporarily, or where the vegetation, where it exists, is dominated by hygrophilous plants for at least part of the year’.

To find out more about the LIFE Biodiv’Paysanne Project, click on the link.
Many thanks to Mathilde Cassé, from the CEN Occitanie press office, for her contribution to the blog and the press pack & photos.