Impact of changing land use practices and pollution on the vegetation dynamics of threatened European plant communities
FP4 — Training and Mobility of Researchers
- Duration
- 1998-01-15 → 1999-01-14
- EU contribution
- —
- Participants
- 2
- Scheme
- RGI
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Project objective
Research objectives and content Traditional areas with high pastoral value are being abandoned in Spain as a result of a decreasing rural population. Secondary successional processes are threatening heathland ecosystems, which were previously maintained in a biodiverse state through grazing management. Vegetation change is currently taking place in such sensitive communities all throughout Europe, but in different directions: abandonment of the traditional management in the Mediterranean countries and intensification in the Northern countries. Whereas several studies have being carried out to understand and prevent unwanted changes, no attempts have been made to examine how decreasing grazing pressure and increasing pollution interact to promote a change in the plant communities in Meridional latitudes and to compare this with the effects in Northern latitudes. This knowledge is essential in order to develop management plans to protect such important and diverse ecosystems at a European scale. Training content (objective, benefit and expected impact) The project will build on the work carried out in Scotland on vegetation dynamics of Calluna-dominated heathlands. It is intended to apply the gained ecological and technical knowledge the applicant's home less favoured region. The parallel nature of the two studies will allow to understand vegetation responses to grazing and increased nitrogen deposition on heathlands in different geographical areas. Links with industry / industrial relevance (22)
Original text from CORDIS.
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Data: CORDIS, © European Union