Abstract
The functioning of various agroecosystems is nowadays shaped by different farming systems, which may impair their functions, as well as being beneficial to them. The benefits include ecosystem services, defined as economic and noneconomic values gained by humans from ecosystems, through supporting soil formation and nutrient circulation, and the impact of agriculture on climate and biodiversity. Their mutual flow and various disturbances depend on the agroecosystem’s management method, which is associated with the type of management of agricultural land (AL) in individual farms. This paper raises a problem of transformation in the structure of three main farming systems in Poland, in 2004–2018, in relation to the implementation of 16 selected ecosystem services and their scale. Special attention was given to organic farming, as the most environmentally friendly and sustainable. The analysis demonstrates the increase in ALs in that type of production during the analyzed period of time. Disparities of transformation associated with the type of agricultural system were noticeable at the regional level, which were presented in 16 Polish voivodeships. The results of the analysis confirm that the organic system, which is an important carrier of various ecosystem services, gained a stable position. Moreover, areas with integrated farming still do not exceed 0.5% of total agricultural lands in such voivodeships. The analysis of factors influencing the deterioration or disappearance of selected environmental services characterizing agricultural systems indicates the need to depart from an intensive conventional management system.
Highlights
The factors contributing to the deterioration or disappearance of selected ecosystem services in agroecosystems that are managed in 3 different farming systems were singled out
Intensive production of livestock, which in Polish conditions especially concerns cattle and pigs, favors the increase in CO2, CH4, N2 O, and NH3 emissions that are the greenhouse gasses contributing to climate change [50,51]. Such type of production results in the further deterioration of the water quality and progressive water eutrophication
Environmental services are weakened if ecosystem services are disturbed, and this problem is nowadays well known from the experiences of many well-developed countries
Summary
In 1850, the general expansion of various crops led to conversion into agroecosystems of approximately 6 million km of forests, 4.7 million km of savannahs, and areas covered by various types of grasslands. Pastures, plantations, and urban areas have expanded in recent decades, accompanied by large increases in energy, water, and fertilizer consumption, along with considerable losses of biodiversity [3]. Such changes in land use potentially undermine the capacity of ecosystems to sustain food production, maintain freshwater and forest resources, and regulate climate and air quality.
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