Vol. 540 No. 3
12 Mr. U. Burke asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage Gaeltacht and the Islands if she will confirm the undertaking given by Dúchas at the meeting in Tullamore on 24 June 1999 that, in the event of compensation being agreed by the task force being greater than the compensation received under the corncrake grant scheme, Dúchas would pay top-up sums to these farmers retrospectively; and if she will state the position in relation to this commitment. [16851/01]
13 Mr. U. Burke asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage Gaeltacht and the Islands the control Dúchas has on the distribution of the corncrake grant to landowners involved in the Shannon callows; and if she will confirm that grants paid to participants are based on actual areas farmed in the corncrake areas. [16850/01]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 12 and 13 together.
I refer to my reply to Questions Nos. 342 and 343 of the 26 June 2001. I confirm that, in accordance with the undertaking given by Dúchas, the heritage service of my Department, at the meeting in Tullamore on 24 June 1999, if amounts due to landowners under the proposed Dúchas scheme for losses arising to farmers from the conservation prescriptions on the Shannon callows are greater than amounts received by the same landowners under the Birdwatch Ireland corncrake scheme, the differences will be paid retrospectively. This is an exceptional measure in recognition of the conservation benefits of farmers' participation in the corncrake scheme.
Dúchas, in association with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, funds the voluntary corncrake grant scheme which is administered by Birdwatch Ireland. Grants are paid to farmers whose meadows fall within a 250 metre radius of a singing male, with the male recorded on at least two occasions a minimum of one week apart. Payments are on a per hectare basis for delayed mowing until 1 August, 15 August or 1 September and for centre-out mowing. Birdwatch Ireland is responsible for the implementation of the scheme. Funding of the scheme by my Department will amount to approximately £46,000 this year. Farmers entering the rural environment protection scheme, REPS, are not eligible for payment under the corncrake grant scheme and, as the numbers of landowners entering REPS increases, the costs of the grant scheme will reduce.
I thank the Minister for her reply and for the indication for the first time of the amount of grants available. Does she accept the consultation process which was supposed to have been entered into as a follow-up to the meeting on 24 June 1999 did not take place? Does she also accept that many participating farmers have been seriously aggrieved by the indication that they were responsible for withdrawing access to their farms to personnel from Dúchas and by the manner in which officials came on site unannounced? I welcome the fact that the Minister has indicated the amount of the grant being made available. However, Dúchas fails to recognise the change in farming practices as a result of farmers' total and voluntary commitment to this scheme. It is a pity there is not greater consultation and rapport between all the parties involved. There is a lot of despondency among the farming community at the way they have been treated by the Department and Dúchas in particular, and the fact that their co-operation was forthcoming has not been fully acknowledged by the Minister.
The Deputy is correct in saying that the corncrake grant scheme is a voluntary one. I always believe in consultation. I wished to attend the meeting to try to find a resolution to this issue, which has taken some time. The Deputy alluded to landowners and the access issue which may have caused some of the delays. However, the matter is now nearing a satisfactory resolution. The measure I have outlined is exceptional in that it recognises the conservation benefits of farmers' participation in the corncrake scheme. It also recognises the tremendous voluntary effort and importance of the voluntary scheme which could not take place without the co-operation of the landowners.
Like other Deputies, I am interested in this scheme. Will the Minister indicate how many years it is in existence and is there evidence that this imaginative scheme is having a positive effect on the conservation of the corncrake?
The corncrake is an annex 1 species of the EU Birds Directive which is Ireland's only globally threatened bird species. Obviously there is a need to immediately address this issue. In order to do so the corncrake grant scheme was set up in the early 1990s by the then National Parks and Wildlife and Birdwatch Ireland on the Shannon callows. A number of measures are being developed to further the corncrake conservation plan and Dúchas in 2001 commenced funding a three year research programme in the Shannon callows to investigate habitat use and late season requirements for cover. The Department recognises that further research and development need to be carried out and it is working on the issue.
The continuing bone of contention among farmers relates to the inadequacy of the grant in recognising the actual area of land farmed as against the Minister's criteria in listing the out meadows. Many people who are dedicated to this conservation effort and wish to adhere to the requirements of the scheme are being denied adequate compensation in that the actual area farmed is quite different from the meadow areas that must be mown.
I acknowledge the Minister's figures this week in regard to the corncrake population in which there has been an alarming decline over a number of years. What percentage of the national flock is in the Shannon callows as distinct from other parts of the country?
The Deputy would need to table a specific question on that matter because my information is more general. I will try to be helpful and give him the information available to me.
The 1988 national census revealed approximately 930 calling birds throughout the country. Between then and 1993, the decline continued and only 173 calling birds were recorded in the latter year. Since 1993 Dúchas has funded the corncrake grant scheme on an annual basis. This has concentrated on delayed mowing, centre-out mowing and the provision of early cover. The rate of decline has slowed down but the species is still at a dangerously low level, which is an important issue. It is the only bird species occurring in Ireland which is classified as globally threatened. My Department is funding the scheme to the tune of £46,000 per annum. The issue which is being addressed is of concern to the experts within my Department.
