Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The difficulty is quite a number of boil water notices are in place in County Roscommon and east Galway. The source of the contamination is hard to know and it will never be proven. At the same time, an environmental scheme is being introduced and approximately one third of those eligible under AEOS and approximately one third of those who were eligible under REPS will be able to apply under GLAS. This means that only approximately one sixth of farmers in east Galway and County Roscommon will be in a position to apply for inclusion in the first two priority areas. Those who fall outside them are unlikely to receive financial assistance in this regard and they will not be encouraged to go forward. We are losing out significantly because of the criteria under the scheme, which are focused more on tillage regions than on vulnerable farms with bovines and sheep in the west, particularly in an intensive production area such as County Roscommon and east Galway.

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