BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY IN ICELAND - Convention on Biological ...

AGRICULTUREAgriculture in Iceland is mainly based on animal husbandry, chieflyold local breeds of sheep, dairy cattle and horses. Large scale poultryand pig farming are increasing. There is a long tradition of growingvegetables in greenhouses heated by geothermal energy.Approximately 1.3% of the country has been cultivated, mainly forhay production. During the summer, sheep and to some extent horses,use most of the country for grazing. Grazing pressure on uncultivatedland has affected the vegetative cover and changed the speciescomposition in many areas, and it has in that way influenced thebiological diversity of grazing lands.The isolation ofChanges in land use over 25 years shown in kmthe country, as well2 .1970 1980 1995as strict regulationsArable land and land underand enforcement permanent crops 1,205 1,330 1,365Land under permanentconcerning the importationof animals Land under mixed forests 1,250 1,325 1,445meadows and pastures 18,795 17,670 17,635Built-up and related land 800 1,100 1,353to Iceland, which areintended to prevent the accidental introduction of animal diseases, haslargely prevented genetic mixing of Icelandic farm races. In recentyears, it was realised that these races possess certain qualities that needto be preserved and protected as a constituent of biological diversity.Under the auspices of the Ministry of Agriculture conservationmeasures have been initiated to monitor and ensure preservation ofthe indigenous breeds found in the country. Beside the three maindomestic species these measures also include the preservation of thelast remnants of the Icelandic poultry, the dog and goat, along withvaluable phenotypes in indigenous sheep, cattle and horse breeds.Conservation of domestic animal genetic resources is directed througha committee under the Ministry of Agriculture. The work is closelylinked to the Nordic Genebank on domestic animals (NGH), aregional institute under the auspicies of the Nordic Council ofMinisters. Work on the conservation and sustainable use of plantgenetic resources is likewise carried out in Nordic cooperation. TheNordic Genebank for plants in agriculture and horticulture was45