asked the Minister for Agriculture if he will give details of the aid available under the western package scheme.
Written Answers. - Western Package Scheme.
491.
Aid available to persons qualifying under the programme for western development is as follows:
Electricity: Grant aid amounting to 80% of the capital cost of new, improved and 3-phase supply to farms and to agricultural marketing and processing plants.
In addition, aid is available for the improvement of selected ESB networks.
Water: 80% grant aid for private group water schemes, subject to a maximum of £600 per house and £400 per potential farm supply. Higher rates apply in the Gaeltacht and on populated offshore islands.
Selected county council schemes also qualify for grant aid of 80% (90% in the Gaeltacht.
Roads: Grants of up to 90% for farm roads (access roads). In the case of forest roads and roads serving commonages and mountain or hill grazing, the level of grant is 80%. In addition special assistance is being made available to county councils for local (county) roads.
Land Improvement: For commonage division (including fencing, reclamation, surface treatment) hill and mountain pasture improvement, and lowland reclamation (other than drainage, which is catered for under the western drainage scheme), the level of grant aid is 70%.
Orientation of Production: Under this element of the programme, grants of up to 40% for farm buildings and 30% for fixed equipment are available. It also contains provision for a calf-to-beef scheme under which a qualifying farmer may receive an interest subsidy not exceeding 16% on a loan of up to £100 per animal for two years on each calf entering the system in the first and second year of an improvement plan. This element of the programme is not yet in operation because of industrial action by the Irish Agricultural Advisers Organisation.
Afforestation: Grant aid for private forestry development is available at the rate of 85% for farmers and 70% for others. Under this part of the programme also, grants of up to 80% of approved costs are available towards the establishment of shelter belts, subject to a maximum of £800 per hectare.
Marketing and Processing: There is a special allocation of some £5 million per year for 3 years under the existing FEOGA scheme for improving facilities for marketing and processing agricultural products. The level of grant applying in the west is now 50% as against 25% in the remainder of the country.
Agricultural Training: Funding is available to provide 200 additional student places at agricultural colleges, for the construction of 22 additional agricultural training centres and for the construction of a resource development centre at Athenry.