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European Landowners’ Organizat ion JULY-AUGUST 2011 - BIMONTHLY - EN

Summer holidays are the moments of rest before the challenges of the winter time and to spend time with our family and

friends. Very often it was also the perfect time

to discover once more European landscapes and

rural activities.

This year is even more important - not only to

support entrepreneurial spirit of those creating

jobs and keeping services in the countryside,

but also to prove that the ongoing economic

crises has not undermined the foundations of

the European Union itself.

We are all aware that the future of the EU is at

stake: The National Sovereign debt crisis has had

such an impact on the Eurozone that agricul-

ture matters will play a secondary role in EU

affairs - can we accept this? What are we going

to do about it?

The solution cannot come in the form of more

subsidies for farmers but for more extension

services and research & technological innova-

tion allowing farms to modernize themselves.

Both the ELO and its sister organization, Friends

of the Countryside, respectively concluded at

their general assemblies, that this is one of the

solutions that will have to be adopted .

To continue the discussions and bring concrete

solutions going beyond the future of the Com-

mon Agricultural Policy, we invite you warmly

to take part in the regional conference of the

4th Forum for the Future of Agriculture which

will take place on the 18th of October in Paris.

Thierry de l’ESCAILLESecretary General

Editorial

XIVth FCS General Assembly

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The XIVth FCS General Assembly took

place from the 27th to 29th of May 2011

in Austria. More than 250 people gathe-

red in the Haus der Industrie in Vienna

to discuss the “CAP credibility of politici-

ans, feasibility for landowners and ful-

fillement of consumers needs“.

Once again the conference attracted in-teresting speakers such as Corrado PIR-ZIO-BIROLI� �LO President� �dith �L���-� �LO President� �dith �L���-�R� Head of Department III – �griculture and Nutrition� Ministry of �griculture� �nvironment and Forestry� Maximilian H�RD�GG� FC� Board member �ustria and Felix MONT�C�CCOLI� President of the Land&Forest Betriebe Österreich.

Giuseppe VI�CONTI� President of the FC�� welcomed the participants of the General �ssembly and addressed the main challenges landowners had to face in the context of the upcoming C�P re-form.

Thierry de l’��C�ILL� in his capacity of �ecretary General of the �LO and FC� gave a brief overview of the �LO and FC� activities. He explored on activities� events and publications the �LO is pre-

paring to voice the FC� position at the �� level. He summed up also the imple-mentation of the project Wildlife �states in the �� member states and underlined that the project is a true succes story be-ing warmly welcomed by both landow-ners and administration including DG �nvironment.

�lexander �CHÖNB�RG- H�RT�N�T�IN� Board Member of the YFC�� continued by explaining the activities of the Young Friends of the Countryside� representing future land managers. He explained that the association which started as a small organisation has evolved into a �uro-pean organisation with more than 180 members representing 18 �uropean countries� seeking to promote a prosper- to promote a prosper-ous �uropean countryside.

The presentation was followed by the �nders W�LL �ward. The jury decided to honour Madars ��LNIN� from Latvia with the first prize for his project «Na-Na-ture� Culture and Human Pearls of Rujie-na». The overall objective of the project was to contribute to the local economy thanks to sustainable forest manage-ment� renovating a manor with a sta-tus of national monument and acknowl-acknowl-edging the culture and heritage in ru-

fXIVth FCS General Assembly

C O N T E N T S

• XIVth FCS General Assembly 1

• YFCS participating in the FCS General Assembly in Vienna. 5

• To what extend does the new European requirements on energy efficiency concern historical buildings? 6

• Cork brought MEPs from the wine intergroup to Portugal 8

• ELO General Assembly 10

• Are you an active farmer? 11

• Wildlife Estates and Natura 2000 seminar in the Czech Republic. 12

• Network of Wildlife Estates - sustainable management of nature. 14

• In brief. 15

• Diary dates 2011. 16

Mr M.Kalnins and Mr J. Nordenfalk

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ral areas. Madars ��LNIN� presented his project in cooperation with his wife to the FC� members.

The „diploma of excellence“ was attri-buted to Carmeuse �.�. for its project «New Land and utilities creation» to de-New Land and utilities creation» to de-» to de-de-velop a land management expertise in quarry restoration and biodiversity in-tegration� and to maintain an increased land value of exhausted industrial fields. On behalf of Carmeuse �.�.� Rodolphe COLLIN�T and Damien GRÉGOIR� expla-ined the conservation and restoration activities. The presentation was comple-ted by a short video.

During the coffee break� the FC� mem-bers had the opportunity to liaise and exchange their experience with their �ustrian friends from the �ustrian lan-downers‘ association Land&Forst Be-&Forst Be-triebe.

The General �ssembly itself was fol-lowed by the FC� Conference entitled „C�P credibility of politicians� feasibility for landowners and fulfillement of con-sumers needs“. Maximilian H�RD�GG� FC� Board member welcomed the par-ticipants. He said that he appreciated the organisation of the FC� Congress in the �ustrian capital. He said that it was a

problem that landowners did not com-municate about what they were doing for environment� food security and safe-ty. Therefore� Maximilian H�RD�GG or-ganised an opinion poll on the knowl-edge� expectations and satisfaction of �ustrian citizens with respect to �ustri-an farmers in October 2010� 500 peo-ple older than 14 years� representing the �ustrian society participated in this phone poll.

Most respondents answered that most important tasks of farmers were food provision and environment and land-scape protection. Half of the respond-ents had a very positive opinion on �us-trian agriculture.

22 % of respondents believed that the payments within the C�P are too small and 39 % of respondents thought that these payments are appropriate. He concluded that although the fact that �ustrian society had a generally positive opinion on agriculture (83% of respond-ents were positive about the �ustrian farmers)� farmers should better commu-nicate to civil society the good examples on the contribution of agriculture to environment� land protection � climate change mitigation� the connection be-tween tradition and modernity and the

importance of the Common �griculture Policy for farmers.

�dith �L����R� Head of Department� Department III- �griculture and Nutriti-on at Lebensministerium – Ministry of �griculture� �nvironment and Forest-ry explored on the �ustrian position to-wards the C�P reform. �he underlined that �ustria supported the strong and properly financed Common �griculture Policy as farming must stay competitive. Felix MONT�C�CCOLI� President of the Land&Forst Betriebe Österreich� poin-ted out in his speech the challenges that land managers have to face. He said that there was a problem that policies were made in urban areas. He added that the �� targets did not always follow the same direction. The civil society expect-ed from farmers more and more servic-es. Nevertheless� it is crucial that land managers are fairly paid for services they provide.

Corrado PIRZIO- BIROLI� �LO President� said that the world was currently under-going a revolution. Within this context� the role of farmers and foresters was cru-cial for food and feed demand� as well as for environment protection and lands-cape conservation. He underlined that the �� could not meet its 2020 targets

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without fully engaging land managers and the C�P was the main instrument for this. Corrado PIRZIO-BIROLI explored on the Commission’s Communication of the 18th of November 2010 “The C�P towards 2020” calling for a well-funded� strong common policy retaining both Pillars and further evolving towards a ba-lanced goal of Food �ecurity and �nvi-ronmental �ecurity. He underlined the importance of incentives� the necessity of keeping both pillars with some adjus-tements and sharing the burden by all �� citizens.

He quoted the �� �nvironment Com-missioner POTOCNI� who had said: “We must not only sanction farmers who do not respect environmental rules� we must also reward those who do provide environmental goods� because the mar-ket does not reward them for that.”

He concluded that many questions re-mained unansewered� therefore the �LO and the RI�� Foundation must continue to advocate their positions as they had

been successfuly doing from the begin-nig of the C�P discussions.

In the afternoon� the FC� visited Prob-stdorfer breeding station and the private estate Prosoroff. The visits were followed by the Gala Dinner at the Castle �lri-the Gala Dinner at the Castle �lri-chskirchen hosted by Count and Coun-tess �lceo B�LG�RINI D’�LCI.

The visists of the beautiful and well ma-naged estates followed next day. The FC� had the opportunity to discover more than five estates in lower �ustria. The FC� who participated in the first tour visited �eefeld-�adolz hosted by Maxi-milian H�RD�GG and �rnstbrunn hosted by Heinrich XIV Prinz R����. The topic of the first visit was wine and farming and the other one focused on historic hou-ses� forestry and wildlife estates. The se-cond group visited Gut Mitterau hosted by Felix MONT�C�CCOLI and Waldreichs /Ottenstein hosted by Richard H�C�L. The visits focused on historic houses� fo-restry� arable crops production� fish crop and falconery. The last group visited

�chloss ��T�RH�ZY. They were hosted by �tephan OTTR�B�Y and the topic of there visit was wine and game-farm. The YFC� visited the estate of Friedrich H�R-D�GG at his estate in �chwarzenbach an der Pielach.

The Congress was followed by a post trip in Lower �ustria. The FC� visited the �tift Göttweig� �astle �rstetten hosted by HOH�NB�RG family� �tift Dürnstein� �as-tle Grafenegg hosted by M�TT�RNICH – ��NDOR family� �astle Greillenstein hosted by ���F�T�IN family and �ast-le Rosenburg hosted by HONO�-�PRIN-Z��T�IN family.

�s confirmed in Vienna by the General �ssembly� next FC� Congress will take place in Vilnius� the Lithuanian capital in June 2012. For more information� con-tact Jehanne de DORLODOT V�RH��-G�N at coordination@elo.org.

Barbora B�C�OV�

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The Young Friends of the Country-side (YFC�) met on Thursday night in Vienna City Centre as a get-to-

gether between known and new mem-bers and guests for the XIVth General �s-sembly of Friends of the Countryside. The official program started on Friday at the Haus der Industrie� “Grosser Festsaal” with a welcome speech by Giuseppe VI�CON-TI� President of Friends of the Country-side. �fter the mandatory points such as the accounts 2010 and 2011 budgets� we were treated to an informative summary of �LO’s 2010 achievements by Thierry de l’��C�ILL� followed by the topic of “Wild-life �states” and its implementation in �� Member �tates. �fter a brief introduction and summary of all YFC� topics of 2010 we had the presentation of the �nders W�LL Foundation �ward.

In the second morning session� Max H�RD�GG� Board member FC� for �us-tria together with Corrado PIRZIO- BI-ROLI� President �LO and Felix MONT�-C�CCOLI� President of the Land&Forst Betriebe Österreich with �dith �L����R� Head of Department� Department III- �g-riculture and Nutrition - Ministry of Life� had an open discussion about the sub-ject of C�P- credibility of politicians� fea-sibility for landowners and fulfilment of consumers’ needs� which was well con-cluded by Thierry de l’��C�ILL�.

The afternoon program could be cho-sen between the breeding station of �aatzucht Donau or the corn processing plant of �lexej PRO�OROFF-W�TTB�RG just outside of Vienna and both were concluded with a fantastic gala dinner at �chloss �lrichskirchen.

On the following �aturday� YFC� had an exclusive program and left the hotel in Vi-enna by bus to Friedrich H�RD�GG’� es-tate in �chwarzenbach/Pielach in Lower �ustria. �fter a welcome coffee we en-

cattle of best quality and export sales to Luxembourg� France� Hungary� Czech Re-public and �lovakia.

He is the president of the �ustrian High-land cattle association and has been ad-vising others on the use of cattle for land-scape management� and how to raise the quality of the meat. They can never compete against intensive meat produc-tion but will always score high with meat quality and their low running costs. His association and publications provide in-sight about the ecological importance of highland cattle� the most efficient farm-ing and breeding techniques resulting in economic profitability if followed along some important processing and market-ing guidelines.

The YFC� saw the newly and partly re-furbished houses and cabins across the family estate which are rented out to nearby Vienna city weekenders with spe-cial hunting permissions as a secondary source of revenue. On our way out of his family estate we could observe some trout and Danube salmon in the river Pielach� which holds another attraction for his city weekender cabin tenants.

�fter our return back to Vienna we re-joined with the FC� at the informal BBQ at the Palmenhaus within the beautiful Vienna Burggarten. Many thanks to the organizing commit-tee for this excellent General �ssembly and another great possibility for the YFC� to join and share our thoughts.

�lexander �CHÖNB�RG-H�RT�N�T�IN

joyed a guided tour through the fami-ly estate in this particular low mountain range of �ustria and had an open dis-cussion on forestry and wildlife manage-ment issues. We were treated to a fasci-nating demonstration of the specialised cable winch equipped with electromag-netic catches to pull timber up the hills to the nearest road. The particular downhill grade of this area is not easy to deal with and in some parts can only now� due to technological advancements� be used for forestry. This has led to massive new forest road constructions to enable prop-er forest management in these areas.

�s being one of the first estates in �us-tria� Friedrich H�RD�GG presented con-servation grazing with highland cattle. In the last 20 years� Mr H�RD�GG has pub-lished various papers about this quiet profitable business. Highland cattle are excellent for grazing and nursing steep� barren land even in extreme geograph-ic situations� due to their robustness and frugality. They thus help to conserve the traditional �ustrian landscape.

Friedrich H�RD�GG is managing his high-land cattle operations on 55ha grassland and 50ha pasture land within his family estate. His focus lies on selling breeding

YFCS participating in the FCS General Assembly in Vienna.

YFCS

The Young Friends of the Countryside (YFCS) met on Thursday night in Vienna

City Centre as a get-together between known and new members and guests for

the XIVth General Assembly of Friends of the Countryside. The official program

started on Friday at the Haus der Industrie, “Grosser Festsaal” with a welcome

speech by Giuseppe VISCONTI, President of Friends of the Countryside.

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Motivated by climate change� the growth and volatility of energy prices� the energy dependency

of the �� and successive economic cri-ses� �uropean legislation regarding ener-gy has been made ambitious and restric-tive in order to achieve the goals that the �� imposed itself by 2020. When to-day’s technology is used to improve the energetic performance of buildings� it is often incompatible with the classifica-tion. Therefore� what are the risks for his-torical buildings?

Regarding energy efficiency� the con-struction sector has today the biggest potential for improvement. Considered as one of the biggest energy consumers

in �urope� this expanding sector is also responsible for more than 40% of total CO2 emissions. Reducing the consump-tion of energy in buildings therefore represents a major potential economi-cal and ecologic gain for the �uropean �nion.

In 2002 the Directive on energy perfor-mance of buildings (�BPD) required the Member �tates to adopt a series of mea-sures in order to limit the energy con-sumption of buildings. Furthermore a calculation method has made it possible to evaluate the energy performance of buildings and to set some minimum effi-ciency standards both for new buildings and for those undergoing major reno-

vations and which have a surface larg-er than 1000 m². From now on energy performance certificates for buildings or regular inspections of heating and air conditioning will be required.

If some member states have shown a good example in this regard� many of them have greatly delayed the imple-mentation of the directive. This fact however has not prevented the �urope-an Parliament and the Council of the �u-ropean �nion from undertaking a revi-sion of the directive in May 2010 to clar-ify the proposed measures and to make substantial changes. In broad terms� it promotes the improvement of the en-ergy performance of buildings in the �nion given the external climatic con-ditions and local conditions� and re-quirements for indoor climate and cost / effectiveness. It emphasizes a stronger role� quality and control of energy certifi-cates� an emphasis on the responsibility

To what extend does the new European requirements on energy efficiency concern historical buildings?

EUROPEAN HISTORIC HOUSES (UEHHA)

In 2010, the European Commission revised the 2002 directive regarding the energy performance of buildings. Today, a new directive on energy is in discussion and should be implemented in 2012.

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of Member �tates in the fight against en-ergy expenditure while it shows a grow-ing interest in passive buildings. Mem-ber �tates are also required to adopt� at national or regional level� a method for calculating the energy performance of buildings based on a set of common general criteria and to set minimum re-quirements� distinguishing between new buildings and existing buildings� in order to obtain optimal levels in terms of cost and efficiency. These minimum measures do not of course preclude the maintenance or establishment� by each Member �tate� of stronger measures. Fi-nally� the directive maintains the need for regular inspection of heating and cooling in buildings.

The �uropean �ssociation of Historic Houses (��HH�) closely followed the re-vision of the Directive on the �nergy Per-formance of Buildings (�PBD).

It was essential to defend the exclusion from the directive of listed historic build-ings: in other words those that cannot adapt to the energy efficiency require-ments in the same way as new build-ings. There are aesthetic� physical and fi-nancial considerations which are too re-strictive to afford the installation of any type of technology and to engage in significant refurbishments of buildings with a significant cultural and historical importance. For example� installing solar panels too often alters the character of a listed building� while too much isolation can have negative effects on the health of the building� not to mention the dif-

ficult question of the chassis that has raised many debates.On the other hand� this directive and its requirements for energy certification� does apply for example to non-classi-fied old buildings. Concerned about this� the �ssociation tries to raise awareness among policy-makers on the value of certain buildings that are not listed. Re-garding increased efficiency� it equal-ly encourages its members to take the lead in this regard following their nation-al governments who are responsible for transposing the Directive. The aim is for historic buildings� both classified as well as non-classified� to enjoy the same ex-emption within the Directive.

There also exists in the �� legislative ar-senal two directives on energy efficien-cy: the Directive on the promotion of cogeneration adopted in 2004 and the another on energy efficiency in end uses and energy services (��D: �nergy �nd �se �fficiency and �nergy �ervices Di-rective)� which aim to provide greater economic and environmental advan-tages� as well as greater competitive-ness and innovation by reducing the en-ergy demand for citizens and business-es. �ach member state was requested to prepare for June 30� 2007 a National �c-tion Plan (National �nergy �fficiency �c-tion Plan - N���P)� to be revised every three years. If the goal was set at a mini-mum 9% up to 2016 (or a 1% reduction in consumption per year)� no special re-quirements were specified in terms of energy efficiency in buildings. But the report of the first N���P was very dis-

appointing: submitted with delay (of-ten well after the deadline of 30/06/07)� these plans are not very ambitious and often are content to take the measures already planned or existing.

These guidelines should be consolidated and combined into one title and domain of the same directive for energy efficien-cy that is the subject of discussion right now in the �uropean Commission. The challenge for the Historic Houses �ssoci-ation is once again to remind of the need to avoid putting too binding targets that would weigh too heavily on the shoul-ders of private owners� especially those who own a historic house. This especially since some of the measures implement-ed would result in inefficient costs and surcharges for owners and the Mem-ber �tates� particularly on the individ-ual energy consumption and frequen-cy of billing based on consumption. The �ssociation is obviously in favour of the effort committed to reducing CO2 emissions and towards energy savings� it also strongly encourages research on techniques suited to old buildings to prevent the deterioration of these build-ings. However� we aim to ensure a rea-sonable application of energy require-ments. �t a time when the Commission asks for regular energy audits� the his-toric houses association emphasizes the need for trained and qualified experts particularly regarding historic buildings.

Donatienne de SEJOURNET

The European Historic Houses Association invites you

to its annual conference

“How to value cultural heritage through tourism and economic

and social activities?”

which takes place in Brussels, Palais des Académies on the 30th September

from 2.00 to 6.00 pm

more information on : www.uehha.or

EUROPEAN HISTORIC HOUSES (UEHHA)

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With the purpose of highlighting

the close relationship between cork

and wine, the European Landown-

ers’ Organization together with the

European Cork Confederation, sup-

ported by the APCOR (Portuguese

Cork Association), welcomed in

May some members of the EU Par-

liament to the Portuguese “mon-

tado” (typical cork oak forests) in

Alentejo.

The �lentejo is one of the major wine regions of Portugal and it is responsible for some of the best wines with interna-tional recognition. Its Mediterranean cli-mate� interrupted with several areas of continental microclimate� is propitious not only for wine but also for the cork oak tree� the tree that provides the bark used to close the wine bottles. However� there is still a lot of misinformation about this material and its uses� which was the motivation for this event.

With this objective in mind� Capoulas ��NTO� (Portuguese M�P� �&D)� �strid L�LLING (Luxemburg M�P� �PP-�urope-an People’s Party)� Christa �L��� (Ger-man M�P��PP-�uropean People’s Party)� and Giancarlo �COTT� (Italian M�P��FD Group-�urope’s Group of Freedom and Democracy)� from the intergroup on “Wine� fruits and vegetables� tradition and quality foodstuffs” travelled to Por-tugal for a visit to the cork oak forests.

The programme started with some wel-coming words from the Portuguese sec-retary of state for Forestry and Rural De-velopment and ViniPortugal’s president� which was followed by the visit to the “Monte dos Fidalgos”� where the group observed the cork extraction from the “Quercus �uber”.The group were then shown the process of making the cork stoppersby the �morim Cork Company.

In Coruche� the group visited the Cork Observatory and participated in the in-auguration of FICOR�� the cork interna-tional fair� together with members of the Portuguese Government.

In Évora� a �N��CO World Heritage �ite�

the group visited the Fundação �ugénio de �lmeida (Cartuxa �state) – the most modern winery in �lentejo. The group also enjoyed a presentation of wines from “Cortes de Cima” one of the most important Wineries in the regionThe last day� after passing through Mon-saraz� the group had its final stop in the �sporão estate� in Regengos.

For centuries� cork has been used in con-tact with food� particularly as a sealing material for wine bottles. In the wine cir-cles it is still considered as the best op-tion for a wine stopper due to its physi-cal properties like elasticity and its func-tions as a filter� being the chosen mate-rial among all the great wine brands.

However� this ecological material is of-ten forgotten and misunderstood by the general consumer leading to the ad-vance of other types of closures. There-fore� it is important to inform decision-makers about a sector that is restrict-ed to the Mediterranean region. In the words of C�PO�L�� ��NTO�� who wel-comed this initiative� “It is necessary that �urope knows the importance of biodi-versity to the ecosystem that covers the cork and its continued viability depends on the exploitation of its main economic value� cork”.

�na ROCH�

Cork brought MEPs from the wine intergroup to Portugal

MEPs LULLING, CAPOULAS-SANTOS and KLASS observing the process of cork extraction of the cork oak tree (Quercussuber).

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT IN BRIEF

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Corrado PIRZIO-BIROLI� �LO Presi-dent� welcomed all participants. Than each organization gave

a short presentation explaining who they are and what they do. Thierry de l’��C�ILL�� �LO �ecretary General pre-sented the activities of the �LO of the last 6 months� presenting also new projects and ideas.

The main discussion was pursued about the C�P reform. �s underlined by all� under the ongoing reform� farmers will have to produce more value with fewer resources. The main raised question was: why should farmers produce environ-mental goods which do not pay when

they benefit the whole society but the costs are bared only by farmers? �ll wel-comed Commissioner’s POTOCNI� po-sition which recognized that the C�P should not only punish non-complying farmers but reward those farmers do-ing more in terms of environmental ef-forts. Two main points of divergence be-tween Commission proposal and �LO were underlined: capping of farm pay-ments (in particular of public goods and food security)� and the definition of “ac-tive farmer” (as this definition should also include those land owners who maintain land in G�C and therefore provide pub-lic goods). The issue of bio-fuel policies and M�RCO��R negotiations were also tackled.

The second part of the meeting was dedicated to the presentation of Polish priorities for the �uropean �nion. Mrs.

Joanna M�C�OWI��-P�ND�R�� Deputy �ecretary of �tate Ministry of �nviron-ment mentioned the most important is-sues: 1. biodiversity� with the follow-up of the conclusions adopted by the Hungar-ian presidency and the challenge of fi-nancing of Natura 2000� 2. financing ad-aptation to climate change� 3. resource efficiency road map as broad conclu-sions will be adopted in December and 4.green economy as the common posi-tion of the �C should be adopted during the Danish Presidency. Mrs M�C�OWI��-P�ND�R� mentioned also the impor-tance of the Water Framework Directive.

Mr �azimierz PLOC��� Deputy �ecretary of Ministry of �griculture and Rural devel-opment spoke about three priorities: the �� budget 2014-2020� including the C�P budget� food producers and the fact they should find new arguments to ask for more funds to decision makers and fish-ery policy. �s a final decision is expected in December the �� security (including secure and healthy food) and level of C�P direct payments will be the hot top-ics of actual discussions. Mr PLOC�� un-derlined the need to maintain both pil-lars- Pillar 2 as crucial for people living in the countryside (more than 45% of peo-ple are living in countryside in Poland).

� field trip to Bovinas farm in Wielkopol-ska region took place the following day. Hosted by a member of the Polish Fed-eration of �nion of �griculture �mploy-ers� Tenants and Land Owners� �LO par-ticipants had the opportunity to discover a privately managed farm of 2400ha� spe-cialized in beet roots� plant breeding and diary cows. �ll participants’ congratulates the owners of such successful and well manage business.

Next ELO General Assembly will take place in Denmark the 5th December.

ELO AND ITS MEMBERS

ELO General Assembly

The members of the ELO gathered last June for their first General Assembly of

2011. The meeting took place in Warsaw to enable all participants to discover

the forthcoming priorities of the Polish presidency of the European Council.

Minister PLOCKE

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When the �ingle Payment sys-tem was introduced in 2004 the definition of a farmer�

holding an agricultural activity were: “Farmer” means a natural or legal person� or a group of natural or legal persons� whatever legal status is granted to the group and its members by national law� whose holding is situated within the Community territory� as referred to in �r-ticle 299 of the Treaty� and who exercises an agricultural activity (…)”. �ome tight-ening of who can claim C�P payments started during the last rather minor re-form of the C�P� the Health Check.

This introduced a new �rticle 28 into the �ingle Payment Regulation whose primary purpose was� sensibly� to allow member states to choose lower limits (in hectares or �uro� or both)� for farmer eligible to claim payments. This was a pragmatic measure to avoid making tiny payments to large numbers of very small ‘farmers” where the administrative costs exceeded the payments made. However �rticle 28 also contained an optional second clause reproduced here: From 2010� member states may establish ap-propriate objective and non-discrim-inatory criteria to ensure that no direct payments are granted to a natural or legal person: - whose agricultural activi-ties form only as insignificant part of its overall economic activities� or – whose principal business or company objects do not consist of exercising an agricul-tural activity. No member states have yet chosen to implement this clause.

Why is the Commission not satisfied with this approach to leave it to member discretion? It has not been explicit about

Are you an active farmer?

ELO AND ITS MEMBERS

ELO General Assembly

its motives� neither has it produced evi-dence that there is widespread abuse of the current definition of “active farmer”. However� the Commission is concerned that payments are being claimed by people who are not genuine farmers� and so they wish to exclude non-farm-ing beneficiaries such as investors� com-panies� authorities� and nature conserva-tion organisations.

There is also mention of the need to respond to the criticism that the C�P is paying for non-agricultural area or land only kept in Good �gricultural and �n-vironmental Conditions (G��C). In the debate about all this there is a frequent reference to “sofa” or “slipper” farmers and to golf clubs and airports claiming C�P payments.

How might they tighten the definition� with what effects? If the Commission is going to tighten up or� as it sees it� bet-ter target� support to active farmers� how might it be done? � rather obvious change would be to substitute “will” for

“may” in �rticle 28.2.�lternatively� the Commission could seek to redefine ‘ag-ricultural activity” in particular to adapt the definition of G��C.(…).

If this is the direction to be taken the immediate effect is significantly to in-crease the information which may have to be asked of applicants to show their agricultural activities are a significant part of their economic activity� or it is their principal business. (…). It will also demand further control and inspection procedures to determine each individ-ual disputed case. This is strongly to be resisted. The bureaucracy surrounding �P� is already excessive and this would add significantly to it.

But in principle it is a very strange direc-tion for the Commission to be taking. Indeed it is a reversal of the core policy since the FI�CHL�R 2004 C�P reforms whose most potent act was specifically to decouple support payments from ag-ricultural production and to introduce the Rural Development Regulation. (…).�ll members who claim to be engaged in farming or other active land man-agement activities are well-advised to ensure they have practical evidence to demonstrate this.

Prof. emeritus �llan B�C�W�LL

The full version of this article is accessi-ble in the Land&Business magazine, in June 2011 edition on www.cla.org.uk

In different countries, as in the UK, ELO members are familiar with the long and

complicated story of defining what a farmer is for the purposes of capital taxes

and, in particular, for agricultural property relief. So there will be no rejoicing

to learn that the European Commission seems determined to introduce similar

complexities into the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). They are threatening to

do this by tightening the definition of who is a sufficiently “active farmer” for the

purposes of claiming the Single Farmer Payment (SFP). ELO, as its UK member -

CLA, is actively lobbying against these ideas.

12

On 3rd June� the �uropean Land-� the �uropean Land-owners� Organization in coope-� Organization in coope-ration with the �VOL (�ssociati-

on of Municipal and Private Forest Ow-ners in the Czech Republic) and �IN��Ý D�L BORGO a.s. organised a workshop in �něžičky. �ntitled Wildlife �states and Natura 2000 in the Czech Republic� the workshop focused on challenges and opportunities for Natura 2000 imple-mentation. The event was opened by the presentation given by Thierry de l���C�ILL�� �ecretary General of the �u-ropean Landowners� Organization who focused on the necessity to look for compromises between the landowners and the public administration.

He underlined that solutions for the Nat-ura 2000 implementation in the Czech Republic should be those which are ac-ceptable for both sides. He concluded his presentation with the statement that landowners can take best care of their land� as they depend on it.

Wildlife Estates and Natura 2000 seminar in the Czech Republic.

The seminar featured the key speeches by Juraj CHMI�L� vice-minister for �gri-culture and Tomas T���R� vice-minister for �nvironment. Juraj CHMI�L explored in his presentation mainly on financial challenges concerning the Natura 2000

network. He explained that there are several budgets to finance the Natura 2000 network in the Czech Republic. He warned that the situation would change after 2013 in the context of the upcom-ing C�P reform and the changes related to the LIF�+ programme.

Tomas T���R explored the cooperation between landowners and the public ad-ministration. He proposed to help land-owners to create a platform to discuss and to jointly look for solutions to prob-lems related to the Natura 2000 network implementation� especially the man-agement plans. He agreed to the im-portance of compensating landowners. Nevertheless� he added that landowners should also look for solutions and not only to wait for subsidies.

The discussion itself was opened by Ladislav MI�O� Deputy Director-General in DG ��NCO� who highlighted the vital role of landowners and land managers in the Natura 2000 network manage-ment. His opening was followed by the presentation by Michael HO��� who ex-plained that the Natura 2000 designati-on process as a quite complex one. He said that in the Czech Republic the pro-cess had gone quite smoothly thanks to a well prepared scientific database. Nearly 2000 landowners were contac-ted during the designation process. It has been nearly concluded and at the same time the preparetion of the ma-nagement plans has already started. The

On 3rd June, the European Landowners´ Organization in cooperation with the SVOL (Association of Municipal and Private Forest Owners in the Czech Republic) and KINSKÝ DAL BORGO a.s. organised a workshop in Kněžičky. Entitled Wildlife Estates and Natura 2000 in the Czech Republic, the workshop focused on challenges and opportunities for Natura 2000 implementation.

ELO AND ITS MEMBERS

13

Czech Republic has to complete its in-sufficencies in one or two years.1

�ttorney Martin FLOR� reacted on the aforementioned presentations stating that landowners were not always consi-dered as partners by public administrati-ons. He reenforced his statement with

a few examples. He underelined that it was not only necessary to follow law and regulations but also to respect the basic rules of courtesy and fulfil given promi-ses. He added that landowners should be compensated for the detriment to their property which had been done in the interest of the public. He explained that such an opinion was also confirmed by the Consitutional Court of the Czech Republic.

Barbora B�C�OV�� �LO� presented the project Wildlife �states aiming at esta-blishing a network of examplary estates. These estates/territories showcase the simple principles of good management and conservation of wildlife estates all over �urope and are adapted according to the different types of hunting ma-nagement in the various regions of the

��. More than 240 estates have been in-volved in this project.2 The presentations were followed by a lively discussion du-ring which landowners could ask questi-ons about various issues regarding Natu-ra 2000 designation� management plans and financing.

The morning talks were followed by a visit to the forests� property of the fami-ly �IN��Ý D�L BORGO. This successful event should be followed by a seminar on Natura 2000 management plans in October 2011.

Barbora B�C�OV�

1 The presentations are available at http://www.europeanlandowners.org/media/documents-and-

2 http://www.wildlife-estates.eu/

‘The participation of private organisations and landowners

in the management of high na-ture values’ survey

The �LO is planning a conference on the 9th of November in Brussels to present the results of the study car-ried out to assess the level of partici-pation of private land owners in con-serving and managing habitats and species in Natura 2000. These results� together with our recommendations� will be presented to the �� Commis-sion during and after the conference.

Therefore we absolutely need your feedback in order to complete the study and present some concrete and credible results. You can access it at following links:

english: http://www.enquetemak-en.be/toonenquete.php?id=56079

français: http://www.enquetemak-en.be/toonenquete.php?id=57168

nederlands: http://www.en-quetemaken.be/toonenquete.php?id=59089

italiano: http://www.enquetemak-en.be/toonenquete.php?id=81107 or at www.3wat�r.eu

THANK YOU FOR YOUR INPUT!

ELO AND ITS MEMBERS

14

Network of Wildlife Estates - sustainable management of nature.

Sustainable use of natural resources� including hunting� is next to the pil-lars of species and habitat conser-

vation the third pillar of the international Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Yet hunting is facing increased pressure and a bad image originating especially from the discrediting activities of ex-treme� misguided animal welfare organi-zations� from notably the bad practices of a few ”hunters” and a general lack of communication� marketing and public relations on the part of hunters.

Wildlife estates� estates in public or pri-vate property� which have as one of their objectives to sustainably manage and use a wildlife population have been and continue to be an important corner stone in the conservation of wildlife and their habitats all over the world. The wild-life conservation success story of for ex-ample �outh �frica is clearly connected to private wildlife estates. Natura 2000 conservation areas in �urope were not just accidentally designated to coincide with the terrain of wildlife estates. Man-agers of these estates must have done something right� if the estates are chosen to become prime conservation areas of the �uropean Communities.

The �uropean Commission and its mem-ber states are in need to provide guid-ance as to what management practices should be used to manage Natura 2000 sites. � network of wildlife estates� rep-resenting geographical differences in terms of natural features ad cultural tradi-tions could form a network of excellence� demonstrating best practices for wildlife management of Natura 2000 sites.

The network provides for the horizontal exchange of information and experience between the estates themselves across borders and bio-geographical regions. It can serve also most importantly as a

two-way channel of communication be-tween practice and policy.

It would be desirable� if such a network would receive research backup through a programme financed for example by the Directorate General for Research of the �uropean Commission to collate all information from the best practice exam-ples and distil the success elements for replication elsewhere. It should be noted that currently ongoing research efforts in relation to the assessment of the value of ecosystem services should not miss out to investigate the economic value of wildlife management. The network can serve as “open laboratory” for experimen-tal research on wildlife related issues. Professional assistance is required to communicate and market the manage-ment and conservation successes of the network. �elected� private Wildlife �state

partners should receive some sort of in-centive to devote resources in support of the Wildlife �state Initiative.

The International Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation (CIC) as a founding partner of the Wildlife �states Initiative is standing ready to assist the develop-ment of the Wildlife �states network es-pecially also in widening it beyond the �uropean boundaries to a world-wide or rather multi-regional programme. The communications means of CIC are at the service of the Wildlife �states Initiative in order to bundle and streamline resourc-es to serve a common objective.

Tamas M�RGH��C�� Director General of CIC

International Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation (CIC)

The CIC� International Council for Game and Wildlife Conser-vation� promotes� on a global scale� the importance of sus-tainable hunting in conservation and advocating the wise use of natural resources.The organisation is unique in its diversity: it unites Member

�tates (mostly represented by the Ministry responsible for wildlife management and conservation)� �niversities� organi-

zations engaged in hunting� as well as individuals such as private members and scientific experts from 84 countries. The legal seat is

located in Vienna (�ustria) and the Headquarters operates in Budakeszi (Hun-gary) under the supervision of the Director General.

CIC and �LO share common goals and therefore from now onwards �LO mem-bers will find a short article about CIC news in printed �LO newsletter and if news with immediate importance come up� we’ll post it on the website.

For more infomation, please visit www.cic-wildlife.org

WILDLIFE ESTATES

Sustainable use of wildlife has a tradition as long as human history reaches

back. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UN-

ESCO) has in November 2010 officially designated falconry, an ancient form of

hunting, on the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

15

In Brief

Anders WALL and Soil Manage-ment Awards- apply now !

The �LO is currently welcoming appli-cations for the �nders W�LL �ward and Land and �oil Management �ward. �ll applications should be submitted to �LO �wards Coordinator �na ROCH� at for-est@elo.org before the 30th of Novem-ber 2011. �hould you need any further informa-tion� please do not hesitate to contact the �LO team.

The Commission proposes the next Multiannual Financial Framework 2014-2020

On the 29th of June 2011� the �uropean Commission presented a package of leg-islative proposals and related documents addressing policy challenges facing the �uropean �nion in the years to come. Within the so called Multiannual Finan-cial Framework (MFF) the Commission’s adopted its principal position to the �n-ion’s finances for the years 2014-2020.

�s explained by Commissioner Janusz L�W�NDOW��I in �opot in July� this proposition is realistic as the �� budget will still remain at the level of 1% of ��

GDP. Now member states and the �P must agree on its size and on future pol-icy priorities.To enable the understanding of the budget a new multimedia tool was cre-ated by the �uropean Parliament. “This application will help media and citizens understand�” said Budgets Committee Chair �lain L�M���O�R�. “That’s impor-tant because the discussion must take place in the open not behind closed doors.”

Source: http://www.euro-parl.europa.eu/en/headlines/content/20110630MUN23022/html/EU-budget-at-glance

The International Forum “Agrarian Regions of Russia: Black Earth” has finished its work in Oryol with great suc-cess.

The Forum was organized by ID�.ru and �mbika-�gro under the auspices of the �dministration of the Oryol Region and is a part of series of conferences “�grarian Regions of Russia” which take place regu-larly for the last three years in the main agrarian regions of Russia (Black �arth� �outh� �iberia� Caucasus� Volga) aiming to encourage investment and market opportunities in Russian agriculture. More than 200 professionals gathered in Oryol’s Grinn business center to discuss pressing issues of the agriculture indus-try and to share experiences and new ideas with fellow businessmen� farmers� government officials� scientists� experts and business analysts.

�mong the hot topics were current grain prices and harvest forecasts� foreign in-vestments� latest technologies and the new edition of Russian Law on �gricul-tural Land Transactions.

Next Forum “Agrarian Regions of Rus-sia: Siberia” is scheduled to take place in Novosibirsk 25-27 October 2011.

For more information please contact forum@ambika-agro.com

Green Paper on promotion measures and information pro-vision for agricultural products

The aim of this Green Paper is to open this debate by speaking to all of the play-ers concerned – consumers� producers� distributors and authorities – with the objective of shaping a new promotion and information strategy which will be targeted and ambitious in scope in order to draw greater benefit from the consid-erable resources of �urope’s farming and agri-food sector. The C�P reform has to feed directly into the �urope 2020 �trat-egy for intelligent� sustainable and inclu-sive growth by promoting an agriculture sector which delivers food security� a sustainable use of natural resources and more dynamic rural areas. �ll organizations and citizens interested in information and promotion of agri-cultural products are welcome to con-tribute to this public consultation by the 30th of �eptember.

Source: http://ec.europa.eu/agricul-ture/promotion/policy/green-paper/index_en.htm

Changing environmental gov-ernance in a changing world

Climate change� growing consumption and urbanisation� spiralling resource use and new health risks are just some of the global pressures the world will face in the 21st Century. These are the findings from the �ssessment of Global Megatrends� launched in November 2010 as part of the �tate and Outlook of the �uropean �nvironment Report (�O�R) and pub-lished last July in a new book version by the �uropean �nvironmental �gency.

For more information go to: http://www.eea.europa.eu/highlights/changing-environmental-governance-in-a?&utm_campaign=changing-environmental-governance-in-a&utm_medium=email&utm_source=EEASubscriptions

IN BRIEF

16CountrySide

is a publication of ELOin English and French

Publisher :Thierry de l’ESCAILLE

Chief editor :Emmanuelle MIKOSZ

Rue de Trèves, 67B - 1040 Bruxelles

Tel. : 00 32 (0)2 234 30 00Fax : 00 32 (0)2 234 30 09

countryside@elo.orgInternet Site :www.elo.org

5 Euros

6- 8 September, near Wolfsburg , GermanyWildlife �states Plenary �ession. - http://www.wildlife-estates.eu/

14th September, WarsawConference on Water pricing in agriculture: on track for a fair and efficient policy in �urope?� organised under Polish Presidency with the �uropean Commission DG �nvironment. http://ecologic-events.de/water_pricing_conference_2011/about

4 - 6 October, Kiev2nd �kraine International �xhibition for �nimal Farming - http://en.animalfarming.com.ua/

5th October, BrusselsConference summarising the Make it Be project - D�CI�ION M��ING �ND IMPL�M�NT�TION TOOL� FOR D�LIV�RY OF LOC�L & R�GION�L - BIO-�N�RGY CH�IN�� co-organised by �LO and its partners http://www.makeitbe.eu

10 -13 October, Brussels Open Days “Investing in �urope’s future - Regions and cities delivering smart� sustainable and inclusive growth”� an event spotlighting �urope’s cities and regions� organised by the �� Committee of the Regions and the �uropean Commission’s DG Regional Policyhttp://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/conferences/od2011/index.cfm

12- 13 October, Lille International �vent on Water Management in �urope� organised by CIW�M� with the support of �W� (�uro-pean Water �ssociation) and ��T�� (�ssociation �cientifique et Technique pour l’�au et l’�nvironnement)www.ciwem.org/lille-2011

18th of October, Paris4th Forum for the Future of �griculture (FF�) regional conference� with a special focus on France� co-organised by �LO� �yngenta and ��F. - http://www.forumforagriculture.com/

25 -27 October, Novosibirsk, Russia Forum “�grarian Regions of Russia: �iberia” - forum@ambika-agro.com

I�BN : 978- 90- 811318-7-2

De Hoge Veluwe National Park� counting 5�500 hectares� is the largest actively managed conservation area in private hands in the Netherlands. It was created from various plots of land purchased by the �ROLL�R-M�LL�R� between 1909 and 1921 which were then combined into one large rural estate. This new rural estate was enclosed by means of fencing and an impressive pair of access gates� while it was also designed as a hunting ground and country residence. One key aspect of this process is the fact that it “froze” the exciting history and development of each of the purchased areas� thus preserving typically Veluwe landscapes with both medieval and nineteenth-century agricultural reclamations and settlements� heathlands and drift sands and areas intended for forestry� all in each other’s immediate vicinity.

During the first decade of the twentieth century� the extensive rural estates became a unique entity in the Netherlands and even on �uropean scale� as it was also shaped on the basis of an idealistic vision of art� nature and society� with the objective of creating a grand atmosphere by uniting nature and culture for the benefit of the community. Nationally and internationally recognised top architects and artists were asked to contribute a multitude of structures and works of art. �fter 1935� when the rural estates became the property of De Hoge Voluwe National Park Foundation� the management and development of the area were continued in the spirit of the �ROLL�R-M�LL�R�.De Hoge Veluwe National Park is still the ultimate unification of nature and art� with a shared background of rich local cultural his-tory� many aspects of which are described and pictures systematically for the first time in this report.

D I A R Y D A T E S 2 0 1 1

Cultural and Historical Analysis De Hoge Veluwe National Park “An aesthetic glimpse of our modern country”

Syngenta

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