The unknown 25% - What kind of grassland is not reported to IACS?

Grassland is of great importance for biodiversity and climate protection. Against this background it is important to know where grassland is located and how much grassland exists. However, in Germany, the area of grassland stated by the land registry offices is 25% higher than the grassland area according to IACS data (Integrated Administration and Control System). The question is what kind of grassland is not covered by IACS. To answer this question we analysed the data of six federal states accounting for 53% of Germany’s total grassland area. We analysed the distribution of IACS and non-IACS grassland with the help of a 10×10 m point raster. Using Logit-models we determine the influence of various natural and legal factors on the likelihood that grassland is registered in IACS. However, our results show that the chosen variables have only a minor explanatory power.