In the course of inspections carried out by my Department in October 2000 and January 2001, it was noted that a field boundary on the holding of the person named had been removed. This was a breach of the conditions of REPS and accordingly the specified penalty of 100% was imposed. To offset the penalty, my Department withheld his fourth year REPS payment. The person named appealed the penalty unsuccessfully to my Department's local office and he then appealed it to the national REPS appeals committee. The appeals committee examined the matter and decided that the penalty had been correctly applied and that it should remain in place. The scheme conditions state that any field boundary is a habitat and removal is not permitted. During its deliberations the appeals committee was aware of the specific facts of the case, namely that an open drain forming a boundary between two plots on the holding had been piped and filled. The REPS appeals committee is independent and its decisions represent my Department's final position on any penalty case.