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2.2        Agricultural systems and practices, and their impact on water

2.2.1        Characterising agricultural systems

Farms can be characterised as “systems” describing their type of crop and livestock production, the resources and technologies used in their management, the production techniques and strategies - also called “farm practices”- and the nature of relationship of the farm with its biophysical, social and economic environment (NRC, 2010).

Recent debates on the impact of agriculture have sought to distinguish between “conventional” farming and “sustainable agriculture”. Conventional farming systems can be characterised alongside the following (NRC, 2010):

• Crop production is particularly resource intensive e.g. in inorganic fertilisers and synthetic pesticides to increase soil fertility and yields. Crop rotations are shorter and focus on the production of marketable commodities.
• Livestock production benefits from higher stocking densities and may rely on partial or full confinement of animals in housing. Grazing is totally or mostly replaced by harvested forage and grain crops. Veterinary products and other medication such as growth hormones are used to boost productivity.

In a historical perspective, the above practices were widely adopted during the productivist, which effectively secured an increasing supply of food in Europe. The associated intensification of farm practices nevertheless had various impacts on the environment, including aquatic ecosystems (Matson, 1997; Stoate et al., 2009; Ruiz-Martinez et al., 2015).

A large number of terms have been used in Europe to describe different forms of sustainable agricultural systems (Table 2.1). More sustainable farming systems depart from conventional farming practices by adopting more systematically agro-ecological techniques, which aim to optimise the use of natural resources, enhance biological processes in the soil, and improve biomass, nutrient, carbon and water cycles (Wezel et al., 2014; FAO, 2018a; EIP-AGRI, 2020). Sustainable agricultural systems aim to reduce the reliance on off-farm resources and synthetic inputs, and increase their resilience from external disturbances and shocks, such as climate change, notably by diversifying farm activities and production (chapter 4.1).

In the recent Farm to Fork Strategy and the Biodiversity Strategy 2030, reference is made to organic farming (Box 2.1) and precision farming (Box 2.2).