Betesdjur i förvaltning av rekreationsområden : en studie av Skåneleden

Abstract: The keeping of livestock has, for a long time, been a part of how humans affect the Swedish landscape. Some areas have been used for grazing for hundreds of years and have formed complex habitats for a variety of different plants and animals. The acreage of pastures has been decreasing since the 20th century and a lot of the species that are dependent upon pastures are now endangered. Simultaneously there are global actions such as environmental taxing, global goals and school strikes for the environment being made to drive us towards a more sustainable development. This essay explores how grazing livestock are used in the management of recreational areas and is delimited to the areas around the Skåneleden trail. The writing intends to answer three issues: What ecological, economic and social benefits and disadvantages are there with using grazing animals in management purposes? What challenges are there to using livestock in management today? How are the different subtrails to Skåneleden planned in relation to the pastures? The questions are answered through interviews with different authorities and landowners concerning the Skåneleden trail. These give their own perspective on the subject. A literature study was carried out to answer what different pros and cons there are with this method of management in relation to the three sustainability dimensions: ecological, economic and social. The literature study relates the subject to the global sustainability goals and the Swedish environmental endeavors. The study's conclusion is that there are many advantages to using grazing animals in the management of recreational areas. Grazing calls for biodiversity and help preserve pastures and Swedish breeds. Letting animals graze leads to a better health among the livestock and helps prevent the occurrence of antibiotic resistance bacteria strains. The livestock preserves the expression in the landscape which is highly treasured in recreational areas. The Swedish cultural landscape and the knowledge within it is preserved through grazing. Tenure of recreational areas is often times the only viable solution for many municipalities as trimming the grass would be too expensive. One of the disadvantages with grazing livestock that is presented in the essay is that pastures are often times not profitable for land and animal owners. There are a lot of problems surrounding the usage of high producing, fast growing animals. These breeds are not able to graze as effectively as the lighter breeds due to their higher weight which leads to consequences for both the production and the pastures. These heavier breeds also cannot move over big pastures to the same extent as the lighter breeds which influences their ability to graze effectively. Another conclusion that is drawn in the essay is that grazing animals is not marketed as a positive aspect of Skåneleden today. Some planners do not believe that it is fitting that some subtrails pass through pastures but that there are no other easily accessible solutions. There is currently no active work being done to improve the interaction between people and livestock along the Skåneleden trail. There is big potential for planners and coordinators to work with educating the public about grazing animals behavior and to work with the animals to create calmer environment. Betterments can be made in the planning and management of the Skåneleden trail to create a more socially sustainable management with grazing livestock along Skåneleden.