Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 28 April 2021
1128. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if there is a cap on the amount an individual farmer can receive for stone wall quality and or tree planting under the results-based environment-agri pilot project scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21278/21]
View answer1129. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if it will be ensured that the results-based environment-agri pilot project scheme has a payment of €10,000 to make it viable for farmers to participate; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21279/21]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 1128 and 1129 together.
The Programme for Government commits to rewarding farmers for adapting to more sustainable methods of farming and to the development of a new agri-environment scheme capable of delivering broad environmental and biodiversity benefits that will align financial supports with climate objectives. To advance this aim, the Results-Based Environmental Agri Pilot Project (REAP) opened for applications last week.
REAP is an innovative and ambitious initiative designed to test the results-based model on participating farms and will feed into the development of the next national agri-environment scheme to follow on from GLAS. It is not an agri-environment scheme but rather a pilot to test certain actions to see if they would be suitable for inclusion in the next large-scale agri-environment scheme.
While the project will support our environmental objectives, it will also support farm income by providing up to €12,600 to participating farms over the two-year term of their REAP contract. This record level of investment in on-farm agri-environment measures demonstrates the commitment of this Government to achieving our environmental goals while investing in farm incomes.
Full details of the project including payment rates, terms, conditions and specifications are now available on the Department's section of the Government website.
