Progetto LIFE NAT/IT/000093 «ECORICE»

Le risaie del vercellese: programma integrato per la riqualificazione ambientale e la gestione sostenibile dell’agroecosistema risicolo

E.5 – IRFEN International networking

Con il patrocinio di:

ALIMENTARI E FORESTALI MINISTERO DELL’AMBIENTE E DELLA TUTELA DEL TERRITORIO E DEL MARE C. Lenti, Foto Archivio P.F.Po vc-al Francesco Pellicciari

International WORKSHOP – 21/6/2013 Vercelli

International Networking: Why

Country

France Spain Italy Hungary Romania Portugal Greece Bulgaria

Country's rice field TRF (ha) N2K (%)

37013.61

144641.05

286369.19

11205.37

6864.96

52823.61

to identify to identify 65.30

37.16

12.60

2.43

9.73

29.87

• LIFE+ ECO-RICE project was requested by EC to carry out a networking action • All across Europe, rice farming is playing a main role with regards to several habitats and species protected by the Birds and Habitats Directives, mainly referring to water related habitats and • species Is there room to achieve added value at EU level by acting as a network?

E.5 International Networking

International WORKSHOP – 21/06/2013

Francesco Pellicciari

International Networking: What is  An attempt to start up a EU level network of subjects involved with management of rice farming and biodiversity conservation  The action target is to define a shared action plan to valorize the relationship between rice farming and biodiversity conservation within Natura 2000 areas  An

opportunity

to test the viability of future collaboration between different local EU “systems” working together to improve the role of farmers in biodiversity conservation  Main issues:  define clear conservation objectives at the wider scale possible;  to work with the best scientific evidence available;  to learn from best management practice involving experts, and farmers amongst them, in design;  to define regionally adapted measures

E.5 International Networking

International WORKSHOP – 21/06/2013

Francesco Pellicciari

International Networking: What have we done Set up the staff Search for “partners”: connection with EU-RICE project Met some stakeholders: Ribatejo (P), Albufera (E), Axios (H), Maritza district (BG) Presented our local criticalities’ matrix main topics, proposed for discussion by Provincia di Vercelli, concerned water cycle management, treatment of rice antagonist, stubble management, agricultural landscape elements, canal and embankment management and exotic species management. Discussed it

E.5 International Networking

International WORKSHOP – 21/06/2013

Francesco Pellicciari

International Networking: What we got • Results of Guglielmina meeting • Guests presented the local features of their areas • EU Rice-fields are hosting several water birds (herons, ducks, waders) and habitats • rice farming practice differs quite significantly • What we learnt • It is almost impossible to adopt the same “guidelines” at the EU level • Rice farming is truly connected with the conservation of several habitat and species of EU interest • An EU common action would better start as general and focus on certain “processes” • We needed informations on a wider set of subjects to define the contexts (that’s why we asked you to fill the data sheets) • Did they make sense to you?

E.5 International Networking

International WORKSHOP – 21/06/2013

Francesco Pellicciari

International Networking: What we wish for our future • Expected results of this action • We would like to end up this action with a common action plan.

• This is meant to identify objectives and lines of action worth of being pursued by an EU network (for example: how to monitor biodiversity in agro-ecosystem, how to design measures for conservation, how to increase the farm competitiveness through biodiversity conservation…) • Such document will be sent to EC as a project deliverable.

• Future steps toward EU cooperation • Such a document could be the basis for future collaboration between partners: we met by a Citizenship project (EU-RICE), started to talk through a LIFEone (ECO-RICE). • We would like to become friends and get better together: maybe an INTERREG 2014-2020?

E.5 International Networking

International WORKSHOP – 21/06/2013

Francesco Pellicciari

International Networking: today's work • Building up a shared vision • Our methodology • 4 focus areas • Agriculture (what farmers can do to improve biodiversity? what they • want in turn?) • Environment (what’s the state of the art of science? indicators, monitoring, environmental/landscape typologies to pursue); • • Governance (how is it possible to improve the design & implementation of public policies?) Rural Development (how biodiversity could play as an added value?) The logical framework : Priorities>Expected results>Actions

E.5 International Networking

International WORKSHOP – 21/06/2013

Francesco Pellicciari

International Networking: today's work • Building up a shared vision • The tools: we will work with posters and post-it (7-words), trying to connect priorities with actions • The schedule: • Context analysis (Pavia University & Guest contributions) 100 mins • Check up 60 mins •

Lunch break

• Discussion 120 mins • Conclusions by Project Manager/Pavia Univ. 30 mins • Next months: • Draft of a document • Osservations by network partners • Draft of the shared action plan

E.5 International Networking

International WORKSHOP – 21/06/2013

Francesco Pellicciari