Further development of the agri-environment indicator “High Nature Value Farmland” for Austria

The indicator ‘High Nature Value Farmland’ (HNVF) describes the national stock of agricultural land with high natural value. These are characterised by their great variety of species or by the occurrence of species with high protection interest. The coverage of such areas in Austria takes into account the current distribution of use-based valuable biotope types and, on the other hand, reflects the current use of these areas. A comprehensive survey of domestic HNVF systems was carried out and appropriate criteria were developed for the identification of areas — the expansion and location of high nature agricultural land. It appears that HNVF is very well suited as an indicator for assessing the impact of the agri-environmental programme measures on biodiversity. ISBN