Mr. Michael Cronin:

Irish Farmers with Designated Lands, IFDL, is a group representing landowners in regions designated for the protection of the hen harrier. This designation was given by the Government under Directive 2009/147/EC, or the EU birds directive, which provides for a comprehensive scheme of protection for all wild birds naturally occurring in the European Union. The total land area affected by this designation is 167,110 ha owned by approximately 3,860 landowners. Hen harrier designation sites are situated in counties Kerry, Cork, Limerick, Clare, Tipperary, Offaly, Laois, Galway and Monaghan.

IFDL was set up in 2014 in response to difficulties experienced by landowners in regions designated for the protection of the hen harrier. It is fully supportive of the EU birds directive and the need to protect hen harrier habitats. It is concerned, however, that the land designation restricts commercial farming practice, resulting in substantial discriminatory financial losses which severely impact on the livelihoods of farmers.

When the designation was given, a compensation scheme was available. It was also understood forestry generally would be permitted. Payments for eligible lands located within hen harrier special protection areas, SPAs, were previously made at three rates. The land parcels included in the plan were required to be managed in accordance with the hen harrier prescriptions. Payments for eligible areas up to 40 ha were made at a rate of €350 per hectare; for eligible areas from 40 ha to 120 ha, at €25 per hectare; and for eligible areas in excess of 120 ha, at €5 per hectare. The Property Registration Authority, with the land parcel identification system and the forest inventory and planning system, both managed by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, were used to identify landowners and land users within hen harrier SPAs that could potentially participate in the scheme. A total of 378 farm plans were approved for inclusion in the hen harrier farm plan scheme. However, more landowners in SPAs could have been eligible for rural environment protection scheme, REPS, and agri-environment options scheme, AEOS, payments.

Funding mechanisms for the hen harrier farm plan scheme did not come under the Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, but the Exchequer. Budgetary constraints in 2010 meant that the National Parks and Wildlife Service, NPWS, was unable to accept further applicants into the hen harrier farm plan scheme, but it did honour previous agreements. In excess of €13 million was paid by the NPWS under the hen harrier farm plan scheme between 2008 and 2013. No specific compensation was paid between 2010 and 2015.

The new green low-carbon agri-environment scheme, GLAS, was introduced in April 2015, with a maximum payment of €370 per hectare, paid on up to a maximum of 18.92 ha, made up of the €5,000 basic GLAS payment and a hen harrier top-up payment to a maximum of €2,000. This effectively means that the only extra payment available to a landowner on hen harrier land is an extra payment above the basic GLAS payment, essentially €2,000. To achieve the maximum figure, a landowner needs to own 18.92 ha. As well as this, afforestation and wind turbine planning permissions are not permitted. This has the effect of decimating the value of land which is protected for the protection of the hen harrier. It is clear that the current compensation scheme is patently unfair and at variance with the land designation principles enshrined in EU legislation.

What is reasonable and adequate compensation? We have two issues, namely, proper compensation for farming in a restricted way because of the designation placed on the land included and the devaluation of the restricted lands owing to the fact that landowners cannot obtain permission for afforestation or wind turbine development. There is a clear injustice. The Government must take the concerns of the farmers affected into consideration and act immediately to correct the issue.

There is a general blanket ban on the planting of trees for forestry purposes in the hen harrier SPA region. This is a particular problem that we believe is unique as regards the designation of lands. In many of the other designations we have studied a scheme is put in place to deal with the loss of income of the landowner. In the case of land value losses, however, we are adamant that the Government must put measures in place immediately to deal with the issue. The fact that all of the designated land for hen harrier protection is situated in upland areas, most of which are disadvantaged, means that forestry is often the only viable farming activity that can take place. Land suitable for forestry is sold for €4,000 to €4,500 per hectare.

Where this type of land comes up for sale, bids will generally not be received if it is within the hen harrier regions. This was well checked out. It is causing problems for many landowners who want to sell their land. There are many reasons for selling. Poorer land may be sold to purchase better land that would allow landowners to develop their farm enterprise. Land value can be used as collateral to allow the owner to borrow for the development of their main farm enterprise or for another purpose. A parent may want to sell land to give his or her adult children the chance to purchase a site, build a house or set up a business. Landowners, as they get older, may need to sell their property to allow them to move to a retirement home, for example, or elsewhere. There may be a medical issue requiring a landowner to sell land urgently. These are but some of the many reasons for selling land, and it is only correct that landowners be able to sell their land at any stage when it is required. We have many clear examples from both auctioneers and landowners of prospective buyers who indicated that it was too risky to purchase lands designated for hen-harrier-associated SPAs. At the many meetings we have attended over the past eight months, it was very evident that landowners are devastated by the realisation that the value of their land has in many cases disappeared.

There are some suggested ways of restoring the value of land that has been totally devalued due to hen harrier designation. Clearly, forestry and wind turbine developments should be generally permitted, as promised when the lands were originally designated in 2008. We should compensate landowners for the financial loss associated with their not being able to plant their land or carry out a wind farm development. I am sure we will have a debate about that later. We could agree to afforestation or wind turbine development requests and then designate equivalent parcels of land from clear-felled State-owned Coillte lands. This could apply on the same farm if all of the landowner's land is not designated. We believe that the amount of land required may not be large; however, it would have the effect of maintaining the value of the land. The State could give a tax credit on hen harrier SPA-designated land. This would ensure that it would sell at a price similar to that of land sold for forestry.

In the United States, there is a state tax credit scheme for conservation land that is similar to our designation scheme. Such schemes were first established in the 1980s, as I understand it, and have been taken up by many states at this point. Under the US scheme, tax credits are given to landowners to deal with the devaluation of land. A tax credit applying per acre per year to land that is designated for the full period of designation should be considered. Another means of restoring the value of devalued land, which may not be a runner, is to give a carbon credit on designated land, which would have an effect similar to that of the tax credit I have described. There are five options, but it is critical to examine the first two or three, particularly that regarding tax.

Let us consider compensation for landowners with hen-harrier-designated land. I refer to the compensation piece. Proper compensation must be available. This must be guaranteed to continue to apply to the lands during the designation period. The payment must be given on every designated hectare, as every hectare has to be farmed in line with the demands of the designation. The scheme formation needs to be flexible, workable and understanding of landowner needs.

The IFDL's proposed compensation scheme is based on the original compensation scheme that was offered in 2008 but was dropped due to budgetary constraints, as mentioned. Components include €370 per hectare in GLAS Plus payment up to 18.9 ha; an equivalent hen harrier compensation rate per hectare in excess of 18.9 ha - i.e., €370 per hectare; a base additional payment of €150 per hectare for parcels up to 13.5 hectares, which would be a top-up and would be front-loaded. The reason for this proposed additional payment is to ensure that landowners with less than 13.5 ha will receive a payment in access of the GLAS payment, which is available to all qualifying applicants irrespective of whether they are in the designated area. If the amount per hectare is not included, any farmer with less than 13.5 hectares designated would basically get nothing extra.

IFDL is fully supportive of the EU bird directive and the need to protect the hen-harrier-designated habitats. A landowner in this situation is a friend of the hen harrier and will be required to farm his land to ensure its protection, and for this work the landowner will require adequate compensation. Effectively, landowners with designated lands are carrying out a job for all the landowners of Ireland as they farm land that must be protected under EU law, which aims to protect this important species. We are seeking a fair income for owners of designated lands and we want to re-establish a value for our lands equivalent to that of neighbouring non-designated lands of similar type. The current compensation scheme - namely, the one linked with GLAS - is unjust and at odds with the principles of the EU legislation. We believe we are putting reasonable proposals together to resolve the issue. We stress the urgency of finding a resolution to this matter. We will refer to this urgency later.