Framework shows potential for rewilding abandoned European farmland

Rewilding, a process of passive management focused on restoring natural ecological processes and reducing human influence on landscapes, could be used to restore the increasing amounts of abandoned agricultural land in Europe to more biodiverse wilderness. A new study has designed a framework to measure potential for rewilding in areas across Europe, highlighting in particular the potential of Natura 2000 sites and suggesting specific aspects of wilderness that future policies could address. It is estimated that active cropland decreased by approximately 19% in Europe between 1950 and 2010. Changes including globalisation of markets, increased labour costs, and shifts in technology and productivity have all led to abandonment of farmland. Instead of creating agricultural policies and subsidies to maintain marginally productive farmland, some ecologists argue that allowing the land to return to a more natural state would yield several benefits. This process is known as 'rewilding'. The benefits include reduced loss of money through subsidies, proliferation of diminished native species, reforestation, and the restoration of ecosystem services provided by wilderness. To help scientists and policymakers assess which areas of abandoned European farmland present the best opportunities for rewilding, researchers have created an assessment framework. Their study utilised land use change projections of the Dyna-CLUE model (a land cover change model which offers projections at a resolution of 1 km