Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael)
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322. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will provide details of discussions his Department have had during 2014 with the European Commission in respect of issues associated with the designation of farm land for the protection of habitats for the hen harrier; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48258/14]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The designation of farm land for the protection of habitats of Hen Harrier is a matter in the first instance for the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. The draft Rural Development Programme submitted to the European Commission include s proposals for the support of Hen Harrier sites under the Green Low-carbon Agri-environment Scheme (GLAS). Hen Harrier land is a Tier One environmental asset and will assure farmers of priority access to the GLAS Scheme. These proposals, which provide for payment of €370 per hectare on Hen Harrier land, have been discussed in the course of bilateral negotiations with the European Commission on the GLAS scheme , and these discussions are ongoing. The payment rates proposed are subject to the overall GLAS ceiling of €5,000 per participant, although some applicants in hen harrier areas may qualify for the higher €7,000 ceiling under GLAS+.

In relation to forestry matters my Department has had discussions with the Commission on the Hen Harrier SPA designations. These involved confirmation of the Commission position that it would be difficult to re-instate a Forestry Management Protocol for these areas without a Threat Response Plan having first been completed.  Pending this, any development that is likely to carry a significant risk to the conservation objectives of the sites, including afforestation, needs to be subject to an appropriate assessment under Article 6(3) of the Habitats Directive.