Environmental Risks in Eco-management of Farms

Anton Mitov

Abstract: A common system of indicators for analysis and assessment of the impact of farm activity on the state of the environment and the quality of life of the population is adopted in the EU–28. This paper discusses agricultural practices that have an impact on the environment and depend on farmers’ management decisions. The aim is to assess the environmental risks that certain agricultural practices cause to the environment. The assessment is made only of the probable risks as in the frame of farms it cannot be taken into account all the environmental consequences of their activities. The survey is based on 13 indicators for the description of which one or several indicators are chosen according to our view of their importance in eco-management of agricultural holdings in Bulgaria. In conclusion, it can be said that ecological risks derived from: high level of nitrogen fertilization and negative ratio between nitrogen and phosphorus , leading to soil salinisation, oxidation and degradation and risk of water pollution; an extremely high share of UAA in specialized crop farms and a simplified production structure violate the balance of nutritional elements in soil and require substantial amounts of nitrogen fertilization; low stocking density which does not provide the necessary manure for plant production and increases the need for mineral fertilizers; the presence of UAA without green cover, which increases the risk of soil erosion, etc. Lessons learned from the assessment of environmental risks arising from the farms’ activity of farm operations call for more careful and precise determination of support mechanisms for farmers with regard to the protection of the environment.

Keywords: agricultural practices; eco-management; environmental risk

Date published: 2018-11-21