Targeted set-aside: Benefits from reduced nitrogen loading in Danish aquatic environments

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Agricultural Science
• Water Quality Management

Background:

• Nitrogen (N) leaching from agriculture causes coastal eutrophication, a problem expected to worsen with increased food demand.
• Exploiting spatial N removal variations, like denitrification, is crucial for sustainable agriculture and water quality targets.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of targeted versus non-targeted land set-aside for N load reduction.
• To assess if prioritizing set-aside areas enhances landscape multifunctionality and achieves N reduction goals.

Main Methods:

• Defined three multifunctional scenarios (GreenEnvi, TerreEco, AgroEcon) based on N load, nature value, and land rent.
• Compared targeted set-aside strategies against a no-targeting approach for N reduction and multifunctionality.

Main Results:

• Targeting set-aside areas with high N loads is more effective than blanket policies, requiring only 23% of land versus 35%.
• The GreenEnvi scenario (N load dominated) achieved multiple environmental benefits and was more cost-effective than targeting solely on land rent.

Conclusions:

• Targeted land set-aside is a superior strategy for achieving coastal N reduction goals and enhancing landscape multifunctionality.
• Prioritizing areas with high N loads for set-aside optimizes resource use and supports both environmental and agricultural objectives.