Ned O'Keeffe
Question:131 Mr. E. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if there are any EC proposals to allow for set-aside of grass land; and whether there are any similar schemes throughout Europe.
Vol. 421 No. 6
131 Mr. E. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if there are any EC proposals to allow for set-aside of grass land; and whether there are any similar schemes throughout Europe.
The agri-environment package of measures included in the recently approved Common Agricultural Policy Reform proposals includes, inter alia, the possibility of aid for long term set-aside of farmland for environmental reasons e.g. for natural parks, the protection of habitats, etc.
The maximum annual amount of aid which could be co-financed by the EC would be approximately £520 per hectare of land set-aside (which would be additional to land set-aside under the market measures).
In drawing up a national agri-environment programme, my Department will be discussing these particular set-aside proposals with the Wildlife Service to see how best they can be accommodated within the programme.
I have no details as to whether this type of scheme is already in operation elsewhere in Europe.