| dc.description.abstract | The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has been many times quoted as one of the most important drivers for the agricultural sector in the European countries and its adverse effects on the environment. Various approaches have been used to investigate the actual links between the two. In this research effort the use of datamining techniques have been used in order to determine what are the links, if any, between the funding provided by the CAP to Greece during the 2nd Programming Period (1994-1999) and the changes in the agricultural sector during that period and in particular the environmental effects of the programs. The results indicate that the three larger financial programs were having some impact to agricultural production. These programs were the Less Favored Areas program, the Farming Investment Plans program and the New Farmers' program. All this programs were funded in Greece by Measure 1.1 of the 2nd Community Support Framework (CSF) for Greece. The main field of environmental investment for the Farming Investment Plans was drop irrigation but this amounted only to 2% of the total investment plans for the whole of the country. On the other hand, no direct linkage with the agricultural production of the three Accompanying Measures of the EU CAP was observed. These Measures were the Organic production program, the Rare Animal Breeds Preservation program and the Reduction of Nitrates Pollution program. Although these programs are more directed towards environmental protection, their limited impact is hardly surprising since these three programs have a narrow scope with regard to areas affected as well as funds provided. The results confirm that the link between the CAP and the agricultural sector size exists but the actual impact of the environmental reform of the CAP during the 90s had hardly any effect in Greece since it was largely underfunded. © 2012 by Nova Science Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. | en |
