2016/01/01 by Caroline Petit, Petit, Caroline, Fabienne Barataud +7
Social Sciences · Agricultural and Biological Sciences · #French Urban and Social Studies #Agriculture and Rural Development Research
paper · pdf · doi:10.15454/1.4721174267437642e12
In the light of the water policy, which is struggling to produce tangible results in terms of water resourcesquality, strong political signals have been sent following the Grenelle Environment Forum in 2009.Protecting water catchment areas (WCA) from agricultural diffuse pollutions has become a set objectivefor local authorities and catchment managers. Setting up water resource protection approaches impliesto initiate changes in agricultural practices and systems. Organic farming has been gradually recognizedas a relevant solution with regard to the drinking water issue and recent regulatory instruments conside that organic farming conversions may be preferentially located in WCAs. In this article we reviewed thefunctioning and the progress of WCA approaches, whose methodology was defined by the stateauthorities. We analysed the place reserved for organic farming in agricultural action programs, thevarious constraints affecting dynamics of organic conversions and determinants of success. Theseelements provide a critical understanding on the implementation of these public policies and the leversfor combining organic agriculture and issues related to protection of water resources.