Managing abandoned farmland to control the impact of re-vegetation on the environment. The state of the art in Europe

Background and aims: In the last decades, large areas undergo a revegetation process as a result of land abandonment, producing significant environmental and landscape impacts. In this paper, revegetation impacts are identified. We present the solutions proposed by scientists to control the negative impacts of revegetation, from a literature review from studies carried out in Europe. Results: Some scientists suggest letting the revegetation process continued to contribute to the naturalisation of the landscape, reduce soil erosion, increase carbon sequestration and encourage recreational use of the territory. Other scientists, however, suggest the need to control the revegetation processes and retrieve abandoned land with productive purposes (extensive livestock and leisure), environmental objectives (reduction of fires and increasing biodiversity) and preserve cultural landscapes. Conclusion: The scrubland clearing and extensive livestock is an appropriate strategy to manage abandoned lands, combining environmental, landscape and socio-economic benefits. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.