Ecological agriculture (EA) has become an important aspect of European environmental policy. Since the implementation of Council Regulation (EEC) No. 2078/1992 the EU promotes EA explicitly due to its positive effects on the environment. In most EU countries EA plays the central role in national agri-environment policy. The environmental and resource use effects of EA relative to conventional farming in an European context were assessed in several studies. EA performs better than conventional farming in respect to floral and faunal diversity with secondary beneficial effects on wildlife conservation and landscape. EA provides an important contribution to the in situ conservation and restoration of biodiversity. EA tends to conserve and enhance soil fertility, mainly due to higher organic mater content, soil aggregate stability, increased soil water retention, resistance to water erosion and soil compaction, enhance microbial biomass and diversity and many other aspects of soil fertility. Research evidence are presented that EA performs better than conventional during climate extremes for both, drought and excessive rainfall.