Plant Diversity Challenge - Plantlife

Objective 2: Conserving Plant DiversityOngoing actions contributing tomeeting the target• Delivering forestry management and agrienviromentschemes• Implementing plans for forestry andagriculture included in the UK, Scottish andEnglish Biodiversity Strategies• Delivering Habitat and Species Action Plansrelating to production land habitats andspecies• Producing management leaflets advising ontechniques compatible with plant diversity• Development of surveillance and methodsfor assessment of status of productionlands, including review of requirements forthe scope of Countryside Survey 2006.Target 6:Conserving plants withinproduction landsAt least 30 per cent of production lands managedconsistent with the conservation of plant diversity.ScopeApproximately 70% of the terrestrial area of the UK is production land.Consequently, it is critical to the conservation of many species that this large part ofthe UK is managed consistent with plant diversity. In the UK, production lands aredefined as areas where the primary purpose is agriculture (including horticulture)and forestry. Production land comprises mainly pastoral (including moorland andmuch semi-natural grassland), arable and commercial forest areas. Many of the UK’ssemi-natural habitats are a product of centuries of agricultural management and theirconservation is highly dependent on their continued agricultural or silviculturalmanagement. Production land can have an impact on integral and adjacent natural orsemi-natural habitats through the intrusive direct or secondary effects of intensivemanagement practices. By managing production land consistent with plant diversitythe negative impacts on adjacent ecosystems should also be reduced.High priority additional work• Developing surveillance initiatives tomonitor the impact of all of the variousincentives and schemes on plant, fungal andalgal diversity• Monitoring the outcome of changes tofarming systems and practices after theimplementation of CAP reform• Reviewing relevant HAPs to ensure thatactions will help to achieve this targetMedium priority additional work• Identifying land management techniquesmost likely to benefit plant, fungal and algaldiversity• Reviewing management incentives andschemes to ensure that relevant landmanagement techniques are included• Ensuring that management incentives andschemes help to conserve and enhanceImportant Plant Areas (see target 5)BOB GIBBONS/NATURAL IMAGECurrent situationIn the UK we have many plant species that are restricted to or highly dependent onproduction lands. For example, the UK is particularly important for grassland fungi.The UK BAP-listed pink waxcap Hygrocybe calyptriformis may be more common in theUK than anywhere else in the world and several of our ‘waxcap grasslands’ arethought to be of European significance. In addition, at least 12 of 220 plant specieslisted as priorities for action under the UK Biodiversity Action Plan (UK BAP) aredefined as restricted to or highly dependent on arable land.A large proportion of UK plant diversity can be found on production land but theCountryside Survey 2000 provided information to suggest that the intensification ofproduction land management is reducing overall plant diversity in these areas. Anumber of threatened habitats (e.g. ancient and species-rich hedgerows, cereal fieldmargins and lowland meadows) are found within production lands. Targets for theprotection and recovery of habitats and species have been set in Habitat and SpeciesAction Plans.Production lands when managedsympathetically with wildlife can be home toa large number of species such as this area ofmachair in South Uist, Outer Hebrides.24