This is a subscriber-only article
Future agri-environment initiatives in NI should be results-focussed to give farmers greater flexibility with management practices, according to agri-environment consultant Dr Patrick McGurn.
Speaking at an Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) meeting in Dungiven on Monday, McGurn said that initiatives such as the Environmental Farming Scheme (EFS) in NI are too focussed on incentivising farmers to carry out specific actions, instead of achieving actual results.
“If habitats are not in good condition or biodiversity is reducing, then questions will be asked about where is the money going and why are projects not working,” he suggested.
McGurn has worked as an independent scheme planner for EFS higher level. He gave an example of a client that had hill land in optimal environmental condition, but was required to change stocking rates and grazing dates to be eligible for EFS payments.
“You have to ask yourself, why?”
He maintained that policy- makers could learn lessons from local agri-environment schemes in the Republic of Ireland. McGurn was involved in the AranLIFE project, which was run on 70 farms on the Aran Islands. A new phase of the scheme was launched this year and renamed Caomhnú Árann. AranLIFE incentivised farmers to prevent scrub from growing on limestone soils and to improve biodiversity in low-input grass swards through grazing livestock.
Land was scored from one to five based on its environmental condition and top-scoring land was eligible for the highest payment of €150/ha/year.
This incentivised farmers to improve the environmental condition of land, but no restrictions were placed on their grazing management.
Payments were also available for capital works, such as removing overgrown scrub and installing water troughs.
High cost
McGurn acknowledged that results-based schemes like AranLIFE have a high administration cost, as land has to be inspected more often than with conventional schemes.
However, he said that the latest phase of the scheme is looking at the use of technologies, such as drones, to reduce this cost.
McGurn maintained that the project helps conserve the countryside on the Aran Islands, which is essential for drawing in the 300,000 tourists who visit each year.
He suggested it had a similar objective to what the UK government wants in post-Brexit agricultural schemes, where farmers are paid for delivering public goods: “Farmers will produce what policy says and will get involved in what there is money in.”
SHARING OPTIONS: