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The Andalusian olive grove in South Spain is employed as a case study to assess the environmental and economic effects of the green architecture (eco-schemes) of the Common Agricultural Policy in relation to low carbon agriculture under different soil management policy scenarios to support more efficient agri-environmental policy making. To do so, we adopted a multidisciplinary approach in which we used: (i) an integrated modelling framework comprising geographic information systems (GIS); (ii) the RothC model; and (iii) a cost-benefit analysis. Results show that eco-schemes provide a significant increase of soil organic carbon (SOC) relative to cross-compliance. Practices involving vegetation covers are more efficient than using pruning residues as mulching. SOC accumulation increases rapidly in the first five-ten years to slow down afterwards. The cost-benefit ratios of eco-schemes policy implementation are higher than one when only SOC is considered. Nonetheless, the inclusion of additional co-benefits has the potential to invert this scenario and enhance policy efficacy. Various insights on optimizing the design and application of eco-scheme efficiency are provided. • The new eco-schemes CAP instrument proposed for woody crops contribute to increase SOC • Mowing cover crops leads to the highest SOC stocks, whereas pruning debris maintains SOC stocks. • Tillage and no-tillage with bare soil systems lead to a significant depletion of SOC stocks. • The economic benefits of eco-schemes would not off-set the costs borne by public authority • Environmental externalities are key to reach the profitability of the policy instruments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores economic opportunities of Opuntia cultivation in Spain regarding fresh food production (comparing production structures of Mexico, Italy and Spain), cactus pear non-food uses (exploiting its bio-functional, medicinal, nutraceutical and cosmetic properties) and environmental issues related to climate change mitigation through soil carbon sequestration. Cactus pear production structures and costs are different in the three countries: Mexico (939.77 €), Italy (4.055.1 €) and Spain (9453.77 €). Spain does not present a real productive sector but only isolated farms. Opuntia is an interesting opportunity for non-food production due to the amount of its bioactive compounds. Main components (μg g−1 dried weight) are: kaempferol (34), myrcetin (65), isorhamnetin and derivatives (590), luteolin (8.4), ferulic acid and derivatives (1,050), and catechin (50). Obtaining these compounds could be a way of increasing cactus pear production profitability and creating jobs and value in rural areas. Cactus pear cultivation is a successful tool to mitigate climate change in arid and semiarid regions considering adequate farm and cultivation practices and systems. This crop is often located in high rurality areas, cultivated by small and micro-farmers. Cactus pear cultivation can be an effective tool for rural development in European arid and semiarid areas regarding production, job creation and environmental issues. • Opuntia is cultivated by micro-farmers in areas of high rurality. • Cactus pear cultivation could be a success to mitigate climate change in arid regions. • Opuntia can be an effective tool for rural development in European arid regions. • Italy presents a developed Opuntia sector and is the model to be followed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Hubs & cluster systems are recognised to greatly decrease development costs of CCS. • Novel multi-criteria analysis is developed to identify dispersed viable CCS sites. • Spanish case study: 15 priority clusters in 4 regions selected for CCS development. • Up to 68.7 Mt CO 2 per year, 21% of Spanish emissions, can be decarbonised with CCS. • CCS combined with bioenergy and blue hydrogen is key to achieve net-zero targets. Many countries have assigned an indispensable role for carbon capture and storage (CCS) in their national climate change mitigation pathways. However, CCS deployment has stalled in most countries with only limited commercial projects realised mainly in hydrocarbon-rich countries for enhanced oil recovery. If the Paris Agreement is to be met, then this progress must be replicated widely, including hydrocarbon-limited countries. In this study, we present a novel source-to-sink assessment methodology based on a hubs and clusters approach to identify favourable regions for CCS deployment and attract renewed public and political interest in viable deployment pathways. Here, we apply this methodology to Spain, where fifteen emission hubs from both the power and the hard-to-abate industrial sectors are identified as potential CO 2 sources. A priority storage structure and two reserves for each hub are selected based on screening and ranking processes using a multi-criteria decision-making method. The priority source-to-sink clusters are identified indicating four potential development regions, with the North-Western and North-Eastern Spain recognised as priority regions due to resilience provided by different types of CO 2 sources and geological structures. Up to 68.7 Mt CO 2 per year, comprising around 21% of Spanish emissions can be connected to clusters linked to feasible storage. CCS, especially in the hard-to-abate sector, and in combination with other low-carbon energies (e.g., blue hydrogen and bioenergy), remains a significant and unavoidable contributor to the Paris Agreement's mid-century net-zero target. This study shows that the hubs and clusters approach can facilitate CCS deployment in Spain and other hydrocarbon-limited countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agroforestry landscapes provide multiple benefits, including the capacity for storing carbon, thus contributing to climate change mitigation. In Portugal, the agroforestry system known as Montado (Dehesa in Spain) is heavily dependent on national and European financial incentives. Lack thereof, or insufficient level, often results in abandonment or intensification (increasing grazing pressure) of management practices. Carbon storage is a stock externality of agroforestry systems currently not targeted by CAP agri-environmental mechanisms. Hence, our work is aimed at assessing and valuing net carbon flow in agroforestry systems to guide a Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) scheme targeting Montado landscapes in Portugal. We have assessed and valued net carbon flow for different land-use change scenarios (abandonment, maintenance, or grazing intensification), focusing on cork and holm oak-dominated Montado and using biomass equations. We applied different explicit carbon pricing mechanisms (market value, social cost, and shadow price) to determine a range of values suitable as financial rewards in the proposed PES scheme. For cork-oak Montado , our results suggest both abandonment and grazing intensification are linked to carbon emissions (−1.5 and −1.6tCO 2 eq.ha-1.year-1, respectively), whereas maintaining Montado results in carbon sequestration (+0.9tCO 2 eq.ha-1.year-1). Similar results were found for holm oak. Based on this biophysical assessment, we estimate that farmers willing to maintain Montado systems are eligible to be rewarded between 106 and 149€.ha-1.year-1 through a PES scheme for the increase in carbon storage they are providing. Incorporating the value of ecosystem services into direct financial rewards could ensure agroforestry systems are kept under sustainable management and continue to supply multiple benefits to society. • Carbon storage is an unrewarded stock externality of Portuguese Montado systems. • CAP mechanisms are needed to halt abandonment or grazing intensification in Montado. • Grazing intensification leads to carbon emissions of up to 1.6tCO 2 eq.ha-1.year-1. • Montado conservation increases carbon storage by 0.9 tCO 2 eq.ha-1.year-1. • The case for Eco-Schemes is built based on the carbon storage potential of Montado. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, field-specific data was collected from a 10-year experiment in central Spain in which vetch (Vicia sp. L.) and barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) were established as cover crops and compared to the traditional fall-winter fallow between two irrigated cash crops, maize (Zea mays L.) and sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.). The global warming potential (GWP) balance included direct and indirect (nitrous oxide (N 2 O) resulting from the deposition of ammonia (NH 3) or from leached nitrate (NO 3 −)) soil greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, changes in soil organic carbon (SOC) and albedo, and carbon dioxide equivalent (CO 2 eq) emissions from inputs, irrigation and farm operations. Several scenarios involving i) changes in the termination method of the cover crops, ii) consideration of the application of a distinct nitrogen (N) source (urea, slurry or manure instead of ammonium nitrate) or nitrification inhibitors, iii) employing the same N rate for all treatments (i.e., conventional instead of integrated fertilization), iv) modelling SOC accumulation over a 100-year horizon, and v) using default emission factors, were also analysed. Under the conditions of our experiment, cover crops mitigated yield-scaled emissions by 77.4% (barley) and 91.9% (vetch). Synthetic N fertilization (particularly the industrial production of fertilizer) contributed 38% to the balance of the cover cropping treatments, followed by SOC (22.5%), irrigation (14.7%) and albedo (14.5%). All scenarios led to notable mitigation efficacies, ranging from 39% mitigation (in barley when considering default or non-specific emission factors) to a net CO 2 eq sink (i.e., >100% mitigation) in the scenario consisting of the replacement of ammonium nitrate by urea or organic fertilizers although with side effects on NH 3 volatilization and/or yields. Based on these results, the combined use of cover cropping and integrated soil fertility management could lead to the design of C-neutral irrigated cropping systems in semi-arid regions. Image 1 • Vetch and barley as cover crops abated net GWP by 90% and 75%, respectively, in comparison to fallow. • Synthetic N fertilization (particularly the industrial production) contributed 38% to GWP. • Soil organic C, albedo change and irrigation were also important GWP components. • All scenarios led to notable mitigation efficacies, ranging from 39% to a net CO 2 eq sink. • Improving N management enhanced the GWP mitigation potential of cover crops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]