The experience of managing floodplains in Svartådalen, Sweden For three days, from August 24th to 26th, in Svartådalen, Sweden, took place the exchange of experience trip, to find out how to combine tourism, agriculture and nature protection in places of Natura 2000. 39 participants took part in the trip – the officials of many local governments, as well as the representatives of nature protection organizations, and many agriculturists.  | | Floodplains of Black river | The experience of managing floodplains in Svartådalen, Sweden For three days, from August 24th to 26th, in Svartådalen, Sweden, took place the exchange of experience trip, to find out how to combine tourism, agriculture and nature protection in places of Natura 2000. 39 participants took part in the trip – the officials of many local governments, as well as the representatives of nature protection organizations, and many agriculturists. Since the year 2000, with the support of the European Union they have attained the upward economical development while implementing LEADER+ programme, as well as other single projects, in the same time securing the conservation of natural values. Why Svartadalen A Sense of the Wild – just around the corner - sounds the slogan of Black River Vally or  | | Map with location | Svartadalen. Svartådalen in Västmanland is a unique culture landscape, rich in nature, culture tradition and situated in the heart of Sweden. Historically a farming area, it still possesses a wealth of forests, lakes, hay meadows and open wetlands. Here is still room for Birds and wildlife. The wetlands of Svartådalen is a big part of the unique landscape and the source of biological richness of the area. It also has a significance to the agriculture in the Valley. The damp pastures and wet meadows provide food for the cattle on a yearly basis. A fact that has kept the grazing and mowing on a good level for keeping the unique, fertile landscape open. Birdwatching around the wetlands provide a good variety of bird species. The green meat and the cheese of happy cows  | | Discussing about green meat | One of the discoveries introduced by the knowledgeable local guide Daniel Green is the so-called “green meat” of Svartådalen. Still in the 1970’s-1980’s farmers across Sweden experienced the influence of big meat and milk processing companies, which forced to lower the purchasing prices for the production produced by the farmers, and made the farming more and more unprofitable. The long time passed until the purchasers started to pay more attention to the origin of products of everyday use. In the market the demand for safe and ecologically pure grown agricultural products increased. It gave the new possibility to develop different ways of farming, including also development of private small-scale butcheries and dairies, as well as small-amount production of farm goods for the market. The goods with the so-called eco-marking are of wide-scale here. For example, six farmer families united for cooperative which offers beef and mutton. Selling it, they guarantee that the cattle were grazed on the rich floodplain meadows of nature reserve, and were not foddered with different food additives. They control the entire process, from the birth of the cattle until the meat comes to the purchaser’s table. The purchasers willingly buy such “green meat” because they trust the farmers, recognize the value of the product and the additional contribution to the nature. Of course, the marketing is also seen to without the information on the home page and local clients, much of the meat being sold in the form of hamburgers on the town’s farmers’ market, but still the philosophy is here. Within a year six families sell for meat 90 cows and 70 sheep. Such income is not enough for fully good life, but it is an important part of the family’s budget, alongside with some other work or rural tourism house. Another family acts similarly – Ben and Birgite, who produce tasty cheese made of milk of 6 | 
| | Happy "cheese" cow | Swedish hill cows grown in the farm. The cheese is sold with a brand that it comes from happy cows, because they eat natural meadows grass, are not additionally foddered and are kept in good conditions. A small shop is located in the same place, where you can always have some tea and watch what the happy cows do nearby. The demand for the cheese is much bigger than they can produce. The same is in some private bakery which is located in the former tiny village church. Both tourists and local people are excited about the local bread and confectionery. Birdwatching tourism Svartådalen is one of the most popular Sweden’s destination points for birdwatching – mainly  | | Cranes are flying for overnighting | | in Svartadalen floodplains | because of rare forest species (owls and woodpeckers) and impressive flights of crane flocks before the autumn migration. Earlier the interest was just topical, but now also both British birds’ observers and nature enthusiast from Germany and the Netherlands come here. The time coincides with tourism side-season – the end of winter and early spring, as well as later in the autumn. It gives the possibility of development to country-side tourism dwellings, which offer traditional overnight stop with breakfast, dishing meals of local food. Organizing birdwatching tourism it is important to follow the ethical principles and take care of their preservation and welfare. Here comes the advantage of mutual cooperation: the people involved in tourism are interested in keeping the natural values, because it provides them with profit. This also refers to the local producers whose production is bought because of cleanness of its place of origin and careful attitude. Even more – on the nearby valley, where in autumn flight together many thousands of cranes, farmers grow several hectares of mixed corn (oats and peas) specially for the cranes. Thus they habituate the cranes for certain places and receive payments for this, as well as make the observation easier. To each farm its own farming plan Although in Latvia you can also find bigger territories of floodplain meadows like in Svartådalen, still the ways of farming are surprisingly similar both in Sweden and here. It was already mentioned before, that big part of their meadows overgrew about 30 years ago when agricultural production recession dominated in all of the country. Also the floodplain meadows of the Black River now got overgrown and their restoration was necessary. Each landowner (the average land area for one farmer is about 70 ha) developed special farming | 
| | The landowner Ingwe | plan for their own farms situated on the territory of Natura 2000. This can be done free of charge by the specialists of suzerain authority from rural support service, in cooperation with landowner. In the plan, which provides for the further farming model for the next five years, it is clearly stated what methods the farmer should use in each certain place not to diminish biological diversity. Here comes one of the differences – for maintaining one floodplain meadow on the territory of Natura 2000 the Swedes can receive even about 460 euros per hectare from the EU support payments intended for agricultural environment (138 EUR in Latvia). In the individual farming plans it is described to details what is allowed and not allowed on a certain territory, Natura 2000 exists, that is why there is no additional necessity in the national level status of the protected territory. Farmer Ingve shows floodplain meadows managed by him. He admits that he had to renew things that his father once considered as pointless. However the situation has changed. Many farmers are motivated to maintain the meadows because of the support payments. Customary changes would most probably happen if the subsidies were withdrawn. It is also thought about keeping the traditional landscape – special funding intended for the restoration of small maroon hey barns. These really create ethnographic mood, and tourists enjoy staying in such an environment. *** The study tour was organised by the Latvian Fund for Nature within the framework of the LIFE-Nature project on Restoration of Floodplain Meadows for European Union Species and Habitats and by the UNDP /GEF project on Biodiversity Protection in North Vidzeme Biosphere Reserve. 
Andris Klepers, LDF |
