Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Farmers with lands identified as important for the hen harrier can avail of payments of €370 per hectare up to a maximum of €7,000 per annum under GLAS.  In addition, I recently announced plans for the introduction of a new scheme aimed at farmers managing large tracts of hen harrier land which will be introduced under the broad heading of the new locally-led measure which is currently being discussed with the EU Commission. However, neither of these schemes – GLAS or locally-led – have anything to do with planting of land.

  The Deputy may however be referring to the Threat Response Plan (TRP) for Hen Harriers which is currently being developed by the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. The TRP is focusing on a number of key pressures which have been identified as impacting on the conservation of the species, the three main pressures, afforestation, intensification of agriculture and windfarm development. The intention of the TRP will be to bring clarity to farmers, forest owners and other landowners about future land management activities in the SPAs, by setting out the measures identified as being necessary to preserve, maintain or re-establish suitable Hen Harrier habitats.

In relation to forestry, it is envisaged that the TRP will determine, inter alia, the circumstances in which afforestation, if any, might be accommodated in Hen Harrier SPAs without impacting on the conservation of the species.  In the meantime, my Department is not in a position to grant approval for any afforestation projects in those areas until the TRP has been completed and measures identified as being necessary to preserve, maintain or re-establish suitable Hen Harrier habitats have been determined.