Vol. 1044 No. 6
64. Deputy David Stanton asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine with reference to his Department’s PV installers registration form, to list the mandatory training courses in solar photovoltaic panel installation that are acceptable to his Department; the institutions that provide such courses; the bodies that certify these courses and the level of certification required; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47015/23]
This question concerns the Department’s solar photovoltaic installers registration form, and the lists that are generated from that form. I am interested in the safety, the competency, and the training and certification of the people who are installing solar photovoltaic, PV, in farms. Will the Minister tell me where these courses that are acceptable to his Department are; what institutions provide the courses; and what certification is involved?
I thank the Deputy for raising this question, for his work on this matter over the last number of months, and his engagement on it.
Farm safety is an absolute priority for my Department and is always given considerable thought in the design of schemes. The new TAMS is aligned to our climate goals with enhanced support for farmers to invest in renewable energy solutions on their farms. To encourage the purchase of solar investments, thereby reducing dependence on fossil energy by farmers, the TAMS solar scheme is ring-fenced with its own investment ceiling of €90,000 and grant aided at the enhanced rate of 60%. The safety of solar PV systems, both at installation phase and for subsequent use by applicants of the TAMS grants, is of paramount importance. My Department has introduced technical specification S198 - a minimum specification for the installation of solar PV systems - which covers all relevant electrical and structural standards. My Department also requires that Safe Electric Ireland registered qualified electricians must undertake training courses in micro solar photovoltaic systems implementation and micro-generators electrical installation. The institutions that provide such courses are Chevron Training & Recruitment Ltd. and Metac Training which are certified to Quality and Qualifications Ireland, QQI, standard. The level of certification is for a special purpose award micro solar photovoltaic systems implementation, and a special purpose award micro-generator electrical installation. The certification is a recognised QQI level 6 award in education and training for both courses. Equivalent qualifications within the EU are also acceptable. My Department also requires that solar PV installers must sign off on a testing and commissioning report that confirms that the system is ready for electricity generation in a safe manner in line with the latest applicable electrical standards.
I thank the Minister for his reply. I have been searching for the registered installer list of actual installers on his Department's website. I can only find the accepted solar PV registered installer list, which lists the companies. It does not list the actual individual electricians. I cannot find it. Will the Minister tell me if there is such a list in his Department? There are two forms that are required to be filled out and one of the forms mentions the companies and the other mentions the installers. I put it to the Minister that the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, has a list of installers but it is not a live list, if such a list exists. If a farmer wants to install solar PV on his or her farm is there a list they can go to and be confident that the people on that list are currently certified, recognised and regulated by Safe Electric Ireland because I cannot find it even though his Department does talk about a list of installers and a list of companies - two separate lists - as SEAI has but the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine does not seem to have?
I am not sure if we have such a list but I will inquire into that and facilitate a further engagement between Deputy Stanton and the Department on this matter. It is important that we do have the full oversight and view of the terms, conditions and safeguards regarding how this work is carried out. In my response I outlined the registration courses and the qualifications required. The Deputy made the point in terms of whether a list is being maintained similar to what is there with the SEAI and I will investigate that further. I am happy to facilitate an opportunity for Deputy Stanton to feed in his experience and understanding of this which I acknowledge he has done a lot of work on to make sure we have as foolproof an approach to the implementation of this grant as possible.
The SEAI lists 12 institutions across the country that provide courses. There is no such list on the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine's website that I can find or maybe the Minister could point me in the direction of it and I would be grateful if he would do so. Would the Minister agree with me that if somebody installs solar PV on a farm and that person is not competent or qualified, that they can actually cause terrible damage and even danger to farmers and to animals? What is the Minister and his Department putting in place to ensure that does not happen and if it has happened, what will his Department do to compensate farmers who rely on these lists? They will go to these lists - it is only companies by the way, not individuals - thinking that these people are competent, regulated and can do things safely. We are talking about livelihoods and lives here so I ask the Minister to take this very seriously indeed. It has happened in other countries where solar PV expanded and all kinds of cowboys went out there with no certification. By the way, the SEAI list is not live either. In other words if somebody is taken off the Safe Electric Ireland list the SEAI has no way of finding out. This is very serious.
We have to make sure these jobs are done right. It is a very significant investment from a Government point of view of 60% grant aid. There is a separate grant ceiling as well from any other investment a farmer might make. It is a significant investment that is undertaken by the farmer also. We are talking about power generation and electricity and it is important that is done right because if it is not it can have serious consequences. With regard to the safeguards the Department has in place there are clear requirements related to the qualifications an installer must have. There is a legal obligation on those installers to fulfil those obligations. If there is any way we can assess the criteria in place to strengthen it further I am very much open to that because we are making a big investment here and I want to see it stand the test of time and to see it deliver for everyone and to be safe. If people have suggestions around the structures of the schemes we will consider those also.
65. Deputy Marian Harkin asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his plans for increasing supports to social farming, given the huge and proven benefit to those participating in social farming programmes. [46851/23]
I ask if the Minister of State has any plans for increasing supports to social farming given that we all know of the proven benefits of social farming and everybody recognises that. To be fair, agriculture has come up to the mark on this one but we need to look at greater coordination with other Departments.
I thank the Deputy for the question. As she and maybe many Members of the House will be aware, social farming provides a planned outcome-focused support placement for people on a farm using the natural assets of the people, the place, the activities and the community to support a person to achieve some of his or her chosen goals. It has been shown to provide benefits to participants such as improved community connections and relationships, increased self-esteem and capacity, improved health and well-being as well as providing the opportunity to develop occupational and life skills from engaging in farm-based activities.
In recognition and in support of all of those benefits, my Department provides funding under the rural innovation and development fund, RIDF, for the development of the national social farming network, known as Social Farming Ireland. In addition, funding is also provided for the development of a number of social farming model projects throughout Ireland.
The organisations currently under contract to provide the services and their associated funding for 2023-2024 are as follows. Under the national social farming network, Leitrim Integrated Development Company CLG - Social Farming Network has received €400,000. Under the social farming model contracts, Leitrim Integrated Development Company CLG has received €100,000, Down Syndrome Ireland Cork branch has received €92,485, South Kerry Development Partnership has received €100,000, and IRD Duhallow has received €84,250. It is anticipated that a similar level of funding will be provided by my Department in 2024 for the extension of all of the above contracts. It is also my understanding that there are additional streams of funding available from other agencies for social farming placements.
I thank the Minister of State, but my question was about any additional supports. I heard what the Minister of State said about the money she has distributed this year. She mentioned the Leitrim development company. It does excellent work. I am very familiar with it. What I am looking at more is the mainstreaming of support for placement and that there would be a level of core funding to train farmers to set up models for social farming.
There is also the idea that if people themselves had access to a disability budget rather than most of it being given to the large providers, people would be able to make choices. That would help us in delivering on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities, UNCRPD, where people with disabilities could make choices as opposed to the system being funded. Will the Minister of State expand social farming beyond agriculture and look at the idea of disability budgets for people?
I thank the Deputy. As she outlines, social farming is continuing to grow. It certainly is growing year on year and its reach is far, and very much into the lives of many people for their enrichment and that whole connection with people. The social farming network funded by the Department is still in development. We are at a stage of growth. It requires substantial support. Certainly, as I indicated, funding for placements comes from a wide variety of sources.
The knowledge of social farming is now being embedded with service providers such as the HSE and other support agencies, and it is very much becoming core to a lot of the services that they provide. That is good. Maybe there is something there to develop those relationships further, not only in these agencies but across government as well.
I take what the Minister of State says, but I am talking about greater co-ordination between Departments. The Minister of State at the Department of Health, Deputy Rabbitte, has given an allocation of €200,000 under a HSE service plan for social farming. Although €2 million was requested, in fairness to the Minister of State, she started the process. That is important. Agriculture has come up to the mark, but it is maybe health and social care. Other Departments need to become involved. This has to be a cross-departmental piece.
I am aware of the value of the initiative. Only recently, I visited Quarryfield in Bunnanaddan near Ballymote in County Sligo where Mr. Gerald Doherty and his family, especially his daughter, Kelly, is very involved in delivering these very valuable services to young people who find themselves in the justice system suffering from mental illness and who generally are vulnerable people with disabilities. I am asking that the Minister of State would do everything in her power to try and ensure greater co-ordination with other Departments.
I will take two supplementary questions from Deputies McNamara and Moynihan.
I wonder if the Cathaoirleach Gníomhach would indulge me. At the outset, the Minister paid tribute to Mr. Paul Dillon, who is retiring after a long career. Mr. Dillon taught me a very valuable lesson. Up to that point, I had believed legislation was made by these Houses, but I learnt in the course of the passage of the Forestry Act 2014 that it is, in fact, made in Departments and rubber-stamped by this House. He was very much the driving force behind the Forestry Act 2014, which was revolutionary legislation. It introduced a new definition of forestry, which is 0.1 of a hectare where 20% is under tree crown cover. It also removed the theretofore protection for individual trees in hedgerows. There followed the destruction of many hedgerows in Clare by Clare County Council, but that is not something that could be attributed to Mr. Dillon in any way. How could he have predicted the particular antipathy an area engineer might have for trees in a hedgerow? Notwithstanding the talk about trees by the Green Party - I do not wish to make this an attack on the Green Party - and environmentalists, generally, there has not really been anything legislative done since then. The Forestry Act 2014 is very much his creation rather than that of this House, as is the case with most legislation.
On Deputy Harkin’s question on social farming, first, I have to express an interest in it. I recently completed a course in UCC on practical supports for social farming. It is one of the great enablers. Farming and being close to nature is natural. It has a massive therapeutic value within society. I believe in the cross-departmental piece. The Minister of State outlined where she has given grants. I am familiar with the south Kerry partnership, which I visited on a number of occasions, and with my own IRD Duhallow and the work that it does. That comes from the Department. I chair the Joint Committee on Disability Matters in the Houses of the Oireachtas. We look at all the needs that exist and the unmet needs in society. It is vitally important there is interdepartmental co-ordination and cohesion because the ability of social farming to help so many in society is enormous.
I thank the Deputies. It is clear everyone places a huge value on the role social farming plays. Indeed, I have had the opportunity to visit social farms in Kerry, Mayo and, most recently, County Laois. The last is a new social farm. It is great to see the spread and the growth. What is also great to see is the value we can place on it because we have seen it in action for a time and the impact it has on people, not only on the participants but on the host farmers as well. There is great value there for people in getting involved in this.
I cannot speak for other Departments, for the Department of Health, the Department of Education, etc., but I am more than happy to co-ordinate with my colleagues across Government and see what more we can do or if there is a better structure that could be in place to support this. I thank the Deputies for their comments.
67. Deputy Michael Moynihan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if the agri-climate rural environment scheme, ACRES, tranche 2 is open for applications; and how many places will be made available on the scheme. [46865/23]
What plans has the Minister to open tranche 2 of the agri-climate rural environment scheme, ACRES, and is any date set for the opening of such a scheme?
I thank Deputy Moynihan for raising this. I am aware there has been significant industry interest in the Deputy's constituency in the agri-climate rural environment scheme, ACRES, and that the Deputy is keen to ensure that continues to be facilitated.
As the Deputy will be aware, ACRES is the central agri-environmental measure in Ireland's Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, strategic plan. We have allocated €1.5 billion to it over the scheme lifetime. This is the largest amount ever committed to an agri-environment scheme. Through that, it will play a huge role in driving environmental improvements and, importantly, providing significant and crucial income support to farm families as well.
Intake into the scheme is phased in tranches to spread the workload on advisers and to enable them to allocate sufficient time for the preparation of applications, the completion of the farm sustainability plan and selection of appropriate actions.
Tranche 1 of ACRES opened for applications on 17 October 2022 and remained open until 7 December 2022 with 46,000 applications received. We worked hard to ensure that 46,000 applicants were accepted on to the scheme and able to participate fully in ACRES this year.
Following budget 2024, I have increased the allocation for ACRES by €40 million, bringing the total 2024 scheme allocation to €200 million, a substantial increase on this year's budget. The provision of additional funding will allow us to deliver on the Government’s commitment to have 50,000 farmers participating in ACRES. An additional 4,000 farmers will be accepted into the second tranche of the scheme.
The same three-step process that applied to the first tranche will also apply to tranche 2. This includes the submission of an expression of interest by farm advisers on behalf of their clients and the preparation and submission of a farm sustainability plan. The final step is the submission of the ACRES applications.
I am pleased to confirm that the expression of interest stage of ACRES tranche 2 is now open and that the Department's online portal for the submission of farm sustainability plans will open shortly. In the event of a higher number of applications being received, a ranking and selection process will be applied based on the extent of the environmental benefit to be delivered. I would encourage all interested farmers to get in contact with an approved ACRES adviser as soon as possible so that they can commence some of the associated preparatory work at the earliest opportunity.
I acknowledge the work that was done to make sure the 46,000 farmers were accepted onto tranche 1. A number of farmers have been waiting this year. I also welcome the expressions of interest because I know an awful lot of work was done to get funding and everything else in place. I think the answer to my next question is probably in the negative. It concerns tranche 1 of the scheme and the ability to amend the scheme when something fairly substantial has arisen that was not included. It is a simple question but it is a major issue for them. Is there any possibility of amending the scheme at this late stage rather than them withdrawing from the ACRES and going into the second tranche? The Minister said that depending on the number of applicants, it is impossible for him to guess how much will be put into it but he might confirm how much is in the overall envelope for tranche 2.
I wish to raise the two streams of ACRES - corporation and general. This was generally done correctly but some of them were wrongly allocated. Many of those wrongly allocated were put into the right allocation, which was the corporation applications, but some of them are still outstanding. It is particularly affecting situations where holdings are designated as special areas of conservation are not scored or paid in ACRES. This has been picked up recently. Is it possible for these holdings that were wrongly classified as general to be moved to the corporation stream because the holdings in question have already scored and this would lead to eliminating the proposed loss of income for these farmers? This can be corrected. It does not affect many farmers but it is really important to those it does affect. Could the Minister look at that?
Regarding the terms and conditions of the scheme, it was laid out very clearly at the start that when plans were submitted, it would not be possible to change them. The logistical challenge of having to administer 46,000 this year, as opposed to 30,000 that had been planned for, puts additional pressure on the system. This is a real challenge. Where it is possible to do things, they have been done but it is simply not possible to change people's plans and this was laid out very clearly at the start in terms of the application process.
I know there will be a strong appetite for more to come in if we have more applicants than we have funding for. There has been a 50% increase in funding for our CAP projects this time around from the national co-funding perspective but that does not mean that there is an unlimited pot either. The profiling for ACRES is 50,000 within that CAP value plan. Obviously, if there is more, it is something I will consider but I must work within the budget I have.
With regard to Deputy Conway-Walsh's question, I am aware of a number of cases. A small number of farmers have been in touch with me in that regard. It is something on which I am engaging with a team to explore further. I do not know what is possible there but I am aware of it and am engaging with regard to examining it.
Briefly, on tranche 1, is it the intention of the Department that those funds would be paid in 2023 for those who applied? How far along the road is the Department with regard to that process?
Yes, it is. The Department is working hard to ensure we pay as many as possible. Previously GLAS would have been at full tilt. During the latter stages of the GLAS programme where farmers would have been following through in terms of years three, four and five, the maximum payment rate that was achieved in any one year involved 85% of GLAS participants because there are always some outstanding issues. If somebody had an issue with his or her basic income support for sustainability, it meant he or she could not be paid his or her GLAS. You will have recurrent issues like that. In previous years when the scheme was fully up and running, 85% was achieved. You would not expect to be able to reach the full 85% being paid this year given that there are probably a few other issues in the first year that you would not see in years two, three and four. The Department is liaising with farmers and their advisers around any issues they see with the objective of paying as many as possible their advance payment before the end of this year and the remaining payment at the start of next year.
68. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine how his Department will cope with the reduction in its budget announced in budget 2024 and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46954/23]
How will the Department cope with the reduction in its budgetary allocation announced in budget 2024?
My goal for budget 2024 is to support our farm and fishing families in every way possible. The funding I negotiated and secured is in fact an increase in core funding year on year. It will support the sector’s environmental ambition and on-farm sustainability while at the same time supporting farmer incomes and providing vital infrastructure to support the development of our fishing sector and coastal communities.
The 2024 Estimates provide a gross Vote of €1.942 billion for my Department. Despite the removal of Brexit adjustment reserve, BAR, funding, budget 2024 is €295 million higher than the budget available to the Department when I took up the role as Minister. We now have an extra €300 million compared to when I took office. While core funding has increased, the overall reduction in the 2024 allocation compared to the 2023 allocation is due mainly to the cessation of the BAR in 2023. The BAR was a source of exceptional one-off funding and was always going to be such. Its eligibility period was from January 2020 to December 2023. This BAR funding was predominantly expended in the fisheries sector but also supported the genotyping programme and the national beef welfare scheme in 2023, which I have now secured national funding to continue in 2024.
Budget 2024 supports farm families as we implement the targeted supports for farmers provided in the largest ever €10 billion CAP strategic plan. The CAP strategic plan is underpinned by the largest ever increase in national co-funding, which is the largest increase we have ever had moving from one CAP budget to the next.
Measures included in budget 2024 include securing the €200 per cow payment between the two schemes that are in place. I had to replace some Brexit funding because €50 out of that €200 last year was Brexit funding so I had to replace that with national funding. We secured that. This year is the first year in which we ever delivered on that €200 for suckler cows, which was a manifesto commitment of mine at the last general election. The other significant step forward we have taken in this budget is increasing the sheep payment to €20 per ewe. This is a doubling of the payment of last year.
The budget leads me to think a lot about the recession of 2008 and how this country got back on its feet. Farmers were instrumental in that. Since then, a lot has happened - Brexit, Covid and the cost-of-living crisis. We are not spending the corporation tax. I know the budget delivers an allocation that is reduced by 10% for agriculture. It is disgraceful that at a time when all the Government parties want to talk about its surplus and its success, it would slash the budget of the Department that represents the backbone of this country.
It really shows exactly what Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Green Party think of farming families. This Government is turning its back on the 6,000 farming families in my constituency and that will not be forgotten. I welcome the funding for ewes. I called for that nine months ago, although I called for more than has been given. It is shocking that no money was set aside for a dairy exit scheme. The true face of disdain for farmers came in the form of there being no money for an ash dieback scheme, an issue I have raised with the Minister many times, as I will continue to do. This is not a good budget for farmers and this Government should hang its head.
It is a total misrepresentation to represent the withdrawal of BAR funding as a cut to the agriculture budget. That was always one-off funding over a period of two years. The deadline for the expenditure of that funding is the end of this year. I have worked to ensure every possible avenue to draw down that funding for both the fishing and agriculture sectors was found and to deliver it for farming and fishing families but it was always going to end at the end of this year. There seems to have been an expectation that the BAR would somehow become a permanent fixture into the years ahead but everyone knows that was never going to be the case. It was this Department that spent the biggest piece of BAR funding. We spent as much of it as we possibly could but, when that funding stops, it will no longer be seen in the budget. Our budget is still increasing, however. For the first time ever, I have delivered €200 for suckler farmers in Clare this year. That will be continued next year. I have also doubled the payment for ewes from €10 to €20 for sheep farmers in Clare. Furthermore, every single person in Clare who applied to ACRES this year was accepted. That is this Government's track record of delivery as regards supporting farmers in Clare.
I appreciate the information the Minister has provided but I also want to talk about late payments. Basic income support for sustainability, BISS, payments were a week late and areas of natural constraint, ANC, payments were a month late. The latter were advertised as advance payments but, in fact, came later in the year than their predecessor payments. Farmers are financially drained. An awful lot of farmers in the county will be getting a lot less money than they normally would at this time of year according to Mr. Tom Lane, chair of the IFA in Clare. This has significant implications for farmers and has disproportionately affected them with regard to practical matters such as worming and vaccination payments to vets. It has led to significant constraints on their livelihoods. It should not have happened. Will the Minister ensure it will not happen again next year? Can the payments be brought forward to avoid these kinds of burdens on farmers?
The change to the nitrates derogation has been an abject failure and has resulted in farmers feeling targeted and punished. A number of questions remain in this regard. I will raise two points. The first is that the nitrates statements that all farmers get are not a true representation of where they are. They do not include grazing and slurry agreements. Can these be updated? With regard to reducing herd numbers, many questions remain. This issue will have very significant implications, especially for animal welfare.
With regard to payments, this is the first year of a new CAP. All these schemes are new and have to be applied to for the first time. That includes what was the basic payments scheme, now the BISS. Back in March, I wrote to every single farmer to inform them of what the payment dates would be this year. All staff in the Department have been working hard to make sure those payment dates were met. This Tuesday past, 90% of farmers had their BISS payments issued to their bank accounts. Last Tuesday, they would have received their ANC payments. Next Tuesday, their eco-scheme payments will issue. The vast majority of farmers in Clare will see their payments increase because, under this CAP, an approach has been taken to convergence that will see farmers in Clare receiving more, on balance, than they would have previously. In addition to that, I have delivered money for schemes in respect of suckler cows and sheep, as I have previously touched on.
Questions Nos. 69 and 70 taken with Written Answers.
71. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine what action his Department is taking to increase opportunities for women in agriculture, given women are under-represented in the Irish agri-sector; if data collection will be undertaken in the current CAP programme to inform the design of schemes in future programmes in such way as to increase their opportunities in agriculture; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46499/23]
What action is the Department taking to increase opportunities for women in agriculture, given that women are under-represented in the Irish agriculture sector? Will data collection will be undertaken under the current CAP programme to inform the design of schemes in future programmes in such a way as to increase women's opportunities in agriculture? Will the Minister make a statement on the matter?
Gender equality across all sectors, including agriculture, is a priority for the Government. I am very proud to have taken quantifiable steps to improve the visibility and representation of, and opportunities for, women in farming and agribusiness.
I am very pleased that, for the first time, Ireland’s new CAP strategic plan includes a number of specific measures aimed at increasing the participation of women in farming. For example, there is an increased grant rate of 60% under the capital investment scheme, the targeted agriculture modernisation scheme, TAMS 3, to fund investments by trained women farmers. Women-only knowledge transfer groups are being promoted and there is improved recording and reporting of gender data and leveraging of the national CAP network to increase the involvement of all women in the implementation of the CAP. All CAP interventions are now being developed with a gender-aware perspective to ensure there are no inherent barriers to women's participation. Furthermore, the European Innovation Partnerships offer an ideal opportunity for the sector to develop initiatives that will promote women's participation in farming.
Since 2015, my Department has provided support for rural female entrepreneurs under the accelerating the creation of rural nascent start-ups, ACORNS, programme. This initiative involves the development and implementation of a tailored programme to support early-stage female entrepreneurs living in rural Ireland. Over 400 female entrepreneurs have participated in the programme since its introduction, with the ACORNS 9 programme commencing this month.
Food Vision 2030 also recognises the importance of gender equality. One action under the plan was to hold a national dialogue on women in agriculture, which I hosted on 1 February this year, St. Brigid's Day. The dialogue was chaired by former Tánaiste and Minister for Agriculture and Food, Mary Coughlan. The outcome of the discussions is currently being compiled into a report that will inform policy in this regard in the coming years.
I have also committed to achieving better gender representation on State boards. I am delighted to see several appointments secured by highly qualified female candidates in 2023 and to report that we are well on track to achieve the 40% gender representation target set for the 12 State boards under my remit.
The 2020 census of agriculture showed that the agricultural labour force amounted to 278,600 people, with 26.96% of these being female and 73.04% male. Data on farm structure in 2016 showed that, of the 137,100 family farms, females were registered as being in charge of only 12%. Just 3.8% of farms are registered with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine as being in joint female and male names. Some 26.96% of the workforce is made up of women but the number of females deemed as being in charge by the Minister's Department is very low. An EU workforce survey shows 40.1% of the agriculture workforce being women. We have a lot of challenges in this area.
Deputy Burke has put his finger on the outstanding challenge as regards the work we have to do in agriculture and farming to make sure the progress we have seen across many other areas of the agrifood sector is reflected at farm level and we start to see a higher proportion of women taking up the role of farm holder and farming within the farm gates. If you call a vet to your farm, it is now likely that a female vet will arrive because we have seen more women than men coming through veterinary colleges. There are now more women than men in many practices. In going to the agricultural colleges, I also see very strong representation of women in many of the different courses in agriculture and the food sector. Making that change as regards women taking their rightful place as farm holders, farm owners and farmers is a slower process but it is one I am committed to pushing forward as Minister. That is why I have taken that step regarding the 60% grant aid to support female farmers under the capital investment scheme. We need to look at taking every step we possibly can to deal with what has been a cultural challenge in this country over the years. The son or nephew was always preferred over a daughter or niece when deciding who would take over a farm.
On the 3.8% figure, where joint registration is involved, surely the Department can make more progress on that. Some 3.8% of farms are jointly registered with the Department, both male and female. That is a very low figure.
That is something we are looking at. We are trying to encourage partnerships. It is something we want to make real progress on. If the Deputy has any advice, our ears and our minds are very much open with regard to what steps we can take. The Women in Agriculture conference dialogue, which was led out by the former Minister for Agriculture and Food, Mary Coughlan, earlier this year, had the objective of bringing women from all aspects of farming together to look at these ideas. The Minister of State, Senator Hackett, contributed very strongly to it and has a very strong interest in this also. Much progress has happened in the agrifood sector generally. It is much slower within the farmgate and that is something we want to see changed. This comes from a cultural backdrop where it was not culturally encouraged in the same way for a young woman to take up agriculture and to become a farmer as it was for a young man. We are seeing that changing. If one goes to a mart now, and in farmyards across the country, one sees this change. There is a great appetite from both genders to become farmers. We have to keep encouraging that to ensure we see that followed through with regard to women taking their rightful place as farm holders also.
72. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the progress that has been made to date in finalising data on the sequestration of carbon by hedgerows to ensure the inclusion of hedgerows in the national inventory; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46950/23]
Some time ago I asked questions with regard to carbon sequestration and the national inventory. I was glad at that time to be told that Teagasc was carrying out research on the hedgerows to see how these could contribute to the carbon stock in agricultural landscapes. I also understood that by adding trees to the hedgerow, it would be possible to increase the output storage of carbon in the hedgerow. Where have those particular research projects gone and has our national inventory been finalised as yet?
I thank Deputy Smith for the question. It is an important aspect and something many people want to understand. The Deputy will probably be aware that the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, is responsible for the reporting of emissions and removals associated with land use activities on an annual basis to the EU and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, UNFCCC. Hedgerows are currently accounted for under the grassland heading of the inventory. However, my Department is undertaking much work to improve reporting of the land use, land use change and forestry, LULUCF, inventory.
On-farm carbon sequestration, particularly through our soils, trees and hedgerows, can make a significant contribution to the continued viability and sustainability of the agrifood sector. Therefore, I believe it is essential that all on-farm sequestration is accurately reflected in the national inventory. To that end, there are several initiatives ongoing at present which aim to reach that objective. Teagasc, in conjunction with FERS Limited, has recently completed research to help to improve the national estimation of hedgerow carbon sequestration in an EPA-funded project called Farm-Carbon. This looked at a number of objectives, including quantifying the carbon stock of biomass, developing biomass functions based on volume measurements, developing a model to incorporate the land use of mitigation potential associated with hedgerows and, quite importantly, developing an integrated scorecard for assessment along the best management practices for carbon and other ecosystem services. The research found, not surprisingly, that increasing hedge width and height can substantially increase both above- and below-ground carbon sequestration while also enhancing biodiversity. It is also clear that all hedges are not equal when it comes to sequestration.
Within the Teagasc Signpost farms programme, the soil organic carbon baseline levels are currently being measured across 100 Signpost farms, with these soils being resampled regularly. Teagasc research, using projects such as the National Agricultural Soil Carbon Observatory and the Signpost farms, aims to improve the measurement of carbon sequestration and focuses on improving estimation of carbon sequestration in hedgerows and on farm woodland. I am confident that, in addition to the research mentioned above, and with improvements being made in hedgerow mapping, the EPA will shortly have sufficient data to better reflect hedgerow carbon sequestration in the national inventory.
I thank the Minister of State for her reply. It is very important, as mentioned by the Minister of State in her answer to me, that we take into account at all times in compiling our national inventory, but also in public commentary on carbon sequestration, how very important it is to our soils, trees and hedgerows. Sometimes that is missed out of the public debate and it also helps to increase biodiversity.
One area on which I tabled questions in the past, I believe to the Department of Transport, was with regard to the potential there is to use large areas of roadside verge for the growing of trees. I am not talking about compromising safety along roads but about using a great deal of public space which could be put to good use in the growing of trees and in increasing biodiversity. If that is done properly, it could be an effective climate change measure and could also play an important part in what we all want to see in biodiversity recovery. This is an area which may not be particular to this question but is one which we should factor in to ensure that we use public spaces as best as possible and that everything in our national inventory is also factored in.
I completely agree with what the Deputy is saying. Alongside the work that is being done on hedgerows, Teagasc is also doing work on soil carbon and the effects of the losses and sequestration there. Mapping is important but I certainly believe with regard to public spaces, that is perhaps where the mapping aspect will come in.
We identify those areas where there are trees in public spaces but my Department actually supports public bodies to plant trees on publicly owned lands. This has been relatively successful and is open currently to local authorities or other public bodies which may have a little space where they might want to plant some trees. They can engage with us and my Department will cover the cost. Ultimately, we will be factoring all of these plantations into our inventory. At the moment, even within the forestry sector, it needs to be an area of over 0.1 ha to be included in the inventory, so a little bit of more flexibility may be required around that, and with smaller plots, for example.
Can the Minister of State give me an assurance - I believe I can take it from her reply already - that all small-scale planting and all small blocks of scrub are measured in the inventory? That aspect is very important.
Are the Department, and the statutory agencies which work with it, engaged in research across the global community? I know that in my own time in the Department we had a great deal of collaboration and co-operation with other research bodies throughout the world across different areas, including the whole area of forestry. It is very important that we have that collaboration, that we have access to that research for the common good and that we participate in as many international programmes as is possible.
I do not have to hand what collaborations are ongoing but I am sure that we wholly engage with international research, particularly within forestry. The Deputy will be aware that we have a challenge now that our forestry estate will become no longer a sink of carbon and that is one of the challenges we face going forward, which is in order to ramp up the planting of trees now in the next number of years, we need to offset that. The science is not entirely clear and continually moves with regard to, for example, the planting of peaty soils and the effects of farming on peaty soils. That continues to move around but we are very confident that what we intend to do around supporting people to plant trees and supporting farmers to plant more hedgerows and indeed supporting public bodies to engage in tree planting will help us to deal with the many challenges which lie ahead.
81. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the extent to which he continues to ensure that the maximum amount of agriculturally productive land continues to grow given the extent to which the agri-food industry has contributed to the recovery in the aftermath of the financial crash; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46713/23]
Glaoim ar an Teachta Durkan. He has literally less than a minute.
I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle. This question seeks to ascertain the necessity to ensure that the maximum amount of agriculturally viable land is retained within the country and within its control, and that thought be given to the fact that the sector made a major contribution to the recovery in the aftermath of the financial crash.
I thank Deputy Durkan for the question. As he knows well and would agree with me, the agrifood sector is our most important indigenous exporting sector, playing a vital role in our economy. It accounts for 6.7% of modified gross national income, employing some 165,000 people or 7% in total of the workforce.
The sector has ambitions to increase the value of agrifood exports further now and in the time ahead. However, to achieve this ambitious export target, we will need to ensure that the path forward is built around sustainable, steady value growth.
Food Vision 2030, which is our shared strategy for the agrifood sector, sets out the ambition for Ireland to become a world leader in sustainable food systems over the next decade and sets down the roadmap for this vision to become a reality. Food Vision 2030 is being developed by the sector for the sector and will deliver significant benefits for the Irish agrifood sector as well as for Irish society and, indeed, the environment. By adopting an integrated food systems approach, we will seek to become a global leader of innovation for sustainable food and agriculture systems, continuing to produce safe, nutritious and high-value food while also protecting and enhancing our environment and cultural resources.
On land use specifically, the sector is responsible for 4.5 million ha of agricultural land and more than 800,000 ha of forestry. Part of phase 1 of the land use review, which provides an evidence base to determine the environmental, ecological and economic characteristics of land types across Ireland, was published earlier this year.
My stated goal is to work to support farmers through that to continue to support their incomes. That land use review will also have an important role to play in terms of informing us of how we best use our land and maintain agricultural land into the future.
