Noel Grealish (Galway West, Independent)
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226. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine how many persons in counties Galway and Mayo had reductions in their agriculture grants as a result of previously eligible land being reviewed and removed as a result of that land being part of a special areas of conservation by county, in each of the years 2013 to 2015; his plans to assist persons in this situation; what percentage of land in Connemara is under an environmental designation which restricts agricultural activity, by designation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1993/16]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Under the provisions of the Basic Payment Scheme, farmers need to declare an eligible hectare for each payment entitlement held in order to benefit from payment. The hectares declared must be eligible and must have an agricultural activity carried out on them The governing EU regulations define an agricultural activity as the production, rearing or growing of agricultural products, including harvesting, milking, breeding animals, and keeping animals for farming purposes and maintaining an agricultural area in a state which makes it suitable for grazing or cultivation. An applicant is free to choose an activity that best suits their farming enterprise and if s/he so wishes can choose to just top the land.

Where an officially approved environmental management plan under the Birds or Habitats Directives requires certain management practices to be conducted on agricultural areas, such management practices will take precedence in determining the level of agricultural activity to be conducted on agricultural areas declared for payment.

Article 32(2)(b)(i) of Regulation (EU) 1307/2013 provides that an eligible hectare is any area which gave a right to payments in 2008 under the single payment scheme and which no longer complies with the definition of 'eligible hectare' as a result of the implementation of Directive 92/43/EEC, Directive 2000/60/EC and Directive 2009/147/EC.

In that regard, the 2015 BPS Terms and Conditions set out details with regard to land eligibility and payments. Section 1.7 refers to land eligibility and states that in order to draw down payment in respect of BPS entitlements, applicants must have an “eligible hectare” to accompany each entitlement. An eligible hectare is land that is used for an agricultural activity.

Section 1.7 of the Terms and Conditions further makes reference to The Birds and Habitats Directives and provides that land that no longer complies with the definition of eligible hectare as a result of the implementation of Council Directive 79/409/EEC on the conservation of wild birds or Council Directive 92/43/EEC on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora is eligible for payment where the following conditions are met:

-The land must have been claimed under the 2008 Single Payment Scheme;

-The land must have been eligible for payment under the 2008 Single Payment Scheme;

-Any increase in the ineligible area should be directly linked to the management requirements for the habitat.

Where an applicant is claiming on land that is otherwise considered ineligible, such land will be deemed eligible for payment where the applicant satisfies the requirements as set out above.

In relation to the percentage of land in Connemara with an environmental designation, my Department, in consultation with the National Parks and Wildlife Service, will compile the data requested and forward this directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.