Loss of natural and semi-natural habitats and intensification


There are several reasons for farmland biodiversity decline. One of them is the loss of natural and semi-natural habitats in agricultural landscapes such as permanent grassland, fallow and landscape features like hedgerows and tree lines, wetlands, ponds, etc. Such natural and semi-natural habitats are the first to disappear when farming intensifies, and are replaced with large area of single-species crop. Another reason is intensification. In order to boost yield, farmers have been using intensive agricultural practices such as heavy use of pesticides and fertilisers, large-scale irrigation, multiple cropping and heavy machinery, leading to the degradation of agricultural and semi-natural habitats, causing declines in biodiversity across huge areas.

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