Land Cover Changes as a Result of Enviro

Nitrate leaching forms an important environmental problem because it causes pollution of groundwater and surface water, and adds to already problematic eutrophication. This study analyses the impact of reductions in nitrate leaching on land cover decisions of dairy farms, which of the activities make an important contribution to nitrate leaching. A non-linear partial optimisation model for the economic and ecological aspects of the problem was used to show how land cover and dairy farms’ financial balances change when nitrate losses are reduced. The model is spatially explicit and describes nitrate leakage and yields of maize and grass as a function of groundwater depth, including the effects of various grazing systems. The study's results highlight the variation in compliance costs and land cover for maize and grass production brought about by spatial variation in groundwater depth. While the effects are negligible for some shallow groundwater classes, obtaining the EU standard of maximum admissible losses is extremely difficult, if not impossible, in other classes. An important finding is that the area of maize tends to decline while that of grass increases as a result of these restrictions, indicating shifts in land cover under varying nitrate leaching levels.