Preservation and future for the low nutrient mountain meadows (oligotrophic grasslands)
Sustainability
Future for oligotrophic grasslands
CASE STUDY
– ARNICA MONTANA –
Oligotrophic grasslands with high biodiversity
- Oligotrophic grasslands are nutrient-poor meadows, which show a high variety of different plants. They can be preserved only through traditional, extensive agriculture-system.
- This is economical not efficient nowadays and therefore meadows aren’t maintained anymore. Inhabitants of the villages are leaving the mountain areas.
- In consequence the landscape is changing dramatically and biodiversity is getting lost.
Harvest permissions through official authorities
- ICB Cluj Napoca
- Nature Monuments
- Apuseni Natural Park
- Environmental Protection Agency
Scientific evaluation of the plant resources
- Establishing crop potential
- Monitoring of biological characteristics
- Establishing a sustainable harvest
Training on the job of the staff
- Both before and during harvest
- Sustainable harvesting and quality
- People's manual
Harvest
Sustainable harvest means, that only a part of the blooming flowerheads of one plant are cropped, rest remains.
Purchase of raw materials
- Purchase points
- Training of people on quality
- Collection and transport in optimal conditions
Stop of harvest
- To harvest in a sustainable way means, to respect nature, not to harvest every single available plant.
Process of drying and packing according customer requests
- Locally
- Specific methods
- Superior quality
Monitoring of the habitat
- Ecological and agronomic characteristics
- Anthropic impact assessment
- Other research (biodiversity, categories of use, etc.)
Organic certification of the crop
- Habitat inspection
- Inspection of the drying process
- Document verification
Beneficiaries – nature, customers, staff and familie
- Beneficiary with sustainability principles
- Stable and long-term beneficiary
- Avoiding the intermediary
Capital creates sustainability
- Constantly long-term
- Fair price
- Reinvested capital