Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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437. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine with regard to the proposed GLAS scheme, the level of training and support that will be provided to the process by the National Parks and Wildlife Services and his Department; and when ecologists and agriculturalists will be selected and trained to do this work. [27217/14]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Work on the development of the GLAS Scheme is well advanced and detailed proposals will be submitted to the European Commission in the near future for consideration and approval. The new Scheme adopts a tiered approach to applications, giving priority access to certain actions which address specific environmental issues. These priorities are targeted towards actions which mitigate climate change, enhance biodiversity and address water quality.

Once the Scheme details are finalised and submitted to the European Commission, appropriate training modules will be developed and rolled out prior to the opening of the Scheme, and these will include specialist inputs, including input from the National Parks and Wildlife Service. In addition, there will be an ongoing training element to the scheme targeted at GLAS participants.

Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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438. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine with regard to the proposed GLAS scheme, the structures that will be put in place to ensure that sustainable commonage management plans reach a common standard across the country. [27218/14]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Work on the development of the GLAS Scheme is well advanced and detailed proposals will be submitted to the European Commission in the near future for consideration and approval. The new Scheme adopts a tiered approach to applications, giving priority access to certain actions which address specific environmental issues. These priorities are targeted towards actions which mitigate climate change, enhance biodiversity and address water quality. In this context, I have included the environmental management of commonage land as a Tier One measure, guaranteeing priority access to the Scheme.

GLAS differs from its predecessor AEOS in that all applications must be drawn up by an approved agricultural planner, including applications in respect of commonage land. Once the Scheme details are finalised and submitted to the European Commission, appropriate training modules, including the drawing up of sustainable management plans, will be developed and rolled out for approved planners, prior to the opening of the Scheme.

Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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439. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine with regard to the proposed GLAS scheme, the reason the RDP leaves the issue of funding the costs of preparing GLAS plans to be borne by farmers alone when it could be funded/part funded directly by his Department under the knowledge transfer or collaborative support measures. [27219/14]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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GLAS is a voluntary Scheme and one of the requirements is that applications be prepared by approved planners. The choice of approved planner is a matter for individual farmers, or in the case of commonages is a matter to be decided by the active shareholders. Over the minimum five year contract period a farmer can achieve €25,000 in payment and it is not unreasonable to expect the farmer to cover the cost of the application.