Since the 1990s, numerous agri-environmental indicators and indicator-based methods have been developed to assess the adverse effects of cropping and farming systems such as water pollution by nitrates and pesticides, and gaseous emissions due to nitrogen inputs. This wealth of environmental indicators and assessment methods based on indicators raises issues on the quality of the methods and of the indicators, and on the relevancy of results. Evaluation and comparative studies are therefore needed to answer such issues. Here, we present four recent comparative studies selected for their illustrative value, first, to analyse the methodologies used for comparison of methods, and second, to highlight the main results of the four comparisons. The first study involves 23 indicators to address nitrate leaching. The second study involves 43 indicators to address pesticide risk. The third and fourth studies compare environmental assessment methods based on 4–5 indicators used in French and Upper Rhine plains (France, Germany and Switzerland). Both studies also compare the outputs of the methods and highlight the low degree of convergence between them. The approach proposed in the last study is the most elaborate among the four case studies. It could be used to develop a generic evaluation and comparison methodology. The review of those four case studies shows the need to formalise the methodology underlying any comparison work of indicators or evaluation methods.

中文翻译：

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比较评估农业系统可持续性的方法。回顾

自1990年代以来，已经开发了许多农业环境指标和基于指标的方法来评估种植和耕作系统的不利影响，例如硝酸盐和农药对水的污染以及氮输入造成的气体排放。大量的环境指标和基于指标的评估方法提出了有关方法和指标质量以及结果相关性的问题。因此，需要评估和比较研究来回答这些问题。在这里，我们介绍四个最近的比较研究，以说明其价值，首先，分析用于方法比较的方法，其次，突出四个比较的主要结果。第一项研究涉及解决硝酸盐浸出的23个指标。第二项研究涉及解决农药风险的43个指标。第三和第四项研究比较了基于法国和上莱茵平原（法国，德国和瑞士）使用的4–5个指标的环境评估方法。两项研究还比较了这些方法的输出，并强调了它们之间的收敛程度低。在上一个研究中提出的方法是四个案例研究中最详尽的。它可以用来开发通用的评估和比较方法。对这四个案例研究的审查表明，有必要正式确定指标或评估方法的任何比较工作所依据的方法。两项研究还比较了这些方法的输出，并强调了它们之间的收敛程度低。在上一个研究中提出的方法是四个案例研究中最详尽的。它可以用来开发通用的评估和比较方法。对这四个案例研究的审查表明，有必要对作为指标比较方法或评估方法基础的方法进行形式化。两项研究还比较了这些方法的输出，并强调了它们之间的收敛程度低。在上一个研究中提出的方法是四个案例研究中最详尽的。它可以用来开发通用的评估和比较方法。对这四个案例研究的审查表明，有必要正式确定指标或评估方法的任何比较工作所依据的方法。