Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 26 Jan 1994

Vol. 437 No. 6

Written Answers. - Commonage Entitlements.

Enda Kenny

Question:

440 Mr. E. Kenny asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry if, in respect of the submission of maps to show ownership and commonage entitlements regarding headage and premium claims, he will give details of the person responsible for carrying out the marking in terms of actual commonage now available for common grazing and his views on the problem of diminished available acreage owing to acquisition by agreement for sites and other such purposes, also required by consent for small farming purposes over many years and not recorded on land registry maps; the person bearing the legal and engineering costs in respect of absolute accuracy in this regard; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry (Mr. J. Walsh)

As regards commonage, I wish to make it clear that where a group of applicants are submitting area aid applications in respect of the same commonage they may submit one map of the commonage through one nominated member of that group and he-she and the other members of the group can then refer on their applications to that map and to their share of the commonage shown on it. It will be the responsibility of the applicants to delineate the outer boundaries of the entire commonage or to arrange for those boundaries to be delineated. In like manner, where acreage of holdings have been reduced by the sale of sites etc. it will be the responsibility of each applicant to deduct the area of such sites and claim arable aid or forage area on the remaining land only. The boundaries of the reduced holding should be delineated as accurately as possible by each applicant or by someone acting on his-her behalf. While the absolute accuracy referred to by the Deputy should be aimed at, it is not a strict EU requirement, however, as a tolerance of 2 per cent or two hectares, whichever is the lesser, is allowed without penalty in each area aid application.

I am aware that the mapping requirements will cause some problems for livestock producers in 1994 just as they caused problems for arable aid applicants in 1993. In future years, however, only changes in areas claimed will have to be notified to my Department by livestock producers and supported by maps and the problems arising in those years, therefore, will be very much less than those arising in 1994.