I thank the Deputy for this question. I know there are many commonage farmers in his constituency so he knows a lot about this issue. The farming of commonages lands has a long tradition in Ireland and, by its very nature, is a complex area. There are issues about the legal right to claim and there have always been disputes about the grazing of the commonages. In the vast majority of cases, however, commonage shareholders work well together on a co-operative basis. It is important to note that the optimum management of commonages will not be achieved unless the farmers are actually involved in the decision marking regarding the management of these lands as their knowledge of commonage areas is better than that of anybody else.
As the implementation of the new Common Agricultural Policy has progressed, my Department has been addressing a number of issues relating to commonage land in the context of both the new rural development plan, GLAS and the new basic payment scheme. The experience to date since the single payment scheme was introduced in 2005 is that there is a growing problem of commonage land being under-grazed and in some cases being abandoned by farmers. A variety of reasons have led to a problem with under-grazing, including the introduction of decoupled payments under the SPS in 2005, the requirement to de-stock in certain areas for environmental reasons and the age profile of farmers with commonage land.
This trend is not good for the environment, as these areas lose the specific characteristics as natural habitats for flora and fauna. In addition, the creeping ineligibility of these lands under the single payment scheme and other direct payment schemes poses a significant risk to the State in view of the risk of financial corrections being imposed by the European Commission.
Under the reformed CAP regime, it was decided that direct payments should be more focused on active farmers. In that regard, it will be necessary for all farmers who apply for aid under the basic payment scheme to have an agricultural activity on each land parcel on which they claim aid. In the case of marginal land including commonages, this agricultural activity can only be achieved by grazing the land. The minimum activity envisaged under the basis payment scheme is a modest one which is equivalent to a minimum of one ewe per 1.5 hectares grazing requirement.
I am not sure if Deputy Kyne was present when we mentioned we were looking at how we could apply flexibility where appropriate.
Additional information not given on the floor of the House
Currently discussions are taking place with the Commission regarding the setting of a relatively modest requirement under the Pillar 1 schemes and the areas of natural constraints scheme for maintaining marginal land including commonages.
My Department is in the process of securing agreement from the European Commission for Ireland’s new rural development plan. The next step is for the draft RDP to be agreed formally with the European Commission as soon as possible. Payments under GLAS, the new agri-environment scheme, can only be made in respect of actions going beyond the baseline requirements under the basic payment scheme under Pillar 1 of the CAP. To secure funding for hill farmers under GLAS, the challenge is to design a scheme which manifestly goes beyond the baseline. The key characteristic of commonage land is that it is farmed in common and the actions undertaken under GLAS will have to reflect that.
On this point, we clearly need to have sufficient people working together to achieve the best results for these commonages, in the interests both of the farming community and of the environment. I have explained how this will work in practice with the participation of a minimum of 50% of active farmers on commonages.
While there are considerable challenges to be overcome to meet both the active farmer requirements under the basic payment scheme and the implementation of grazing plans on commonages under GLAS, it is only in this way that the problems arising from undergrazing of commonages and resultant spread of scrub can be addressed effectively. It is clear that unless decisive action is taken, the level of ineligible areas will continue to expand.
