Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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455. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he is satisfied that adequate soil management continues to take place, given the need to ensure that adequate drainage, soil aeration and productive capacity remain vital in the future, notwithstanding the current emphasis on the need for rewetting and mindful of the necessity to achieve the maximum level of food production; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56232/23]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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I recognise the importance of sustainable soil management practices on Irish farms and how they will help us to deliver on the environmental objectives of the EU Green Deal and on our own agri-food strategy Food Vision 2030.

It has to be acknowledged that soil drainage poses particular challenges in Ireland. There is a great variety of soils and soil problems which means that every drainage challenge on soils is unique. The reduced management intensity of drained organic soils is an entirely new area of work with much uncertainty and complexity, which Ireland will need to pioneer an approach to. The uncertainty is caused by data gaps in respect to the location of organic soils, the nature of land management and intensity, the drainage location and status and the level of GHG emissions emitted from these soils in varying states of wetness and management.

I have targeted investment in projects to deal with this uncertainty, with the National Agricultural Soil Carbon Observatory seeking to provide a more accurate picture of soil emissions and removals; the RePeat project to provide greater resolution peat soil maps; and two European Innovation Projects, FarmPeat and FarmCarbon, who are working with farmers at farm level to develop innovative solutions, with learnings already been brought across into the ACRES scheme.

I have also provided significant funding for a Soil Sampling and Analysis Programme. This programme provides valuable information to farmers to inform decisions that promote the health of their soils and is aimed at putting soil health, soil fertility and soil carbon at the very centre of our future agricultural model. Approval letters for the second phase of this programme issued to 7,000 farmers last week.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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456. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the extent to which he remains satisfied that adequate protection is in place to ensure future protection of agriculturally productive land and the need to maintain high productivity in the future in the sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56233/23]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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In 2022 the agri-food sector, which includes primary production in farming, fishing and forestry, and the processing and manufacture of food, beverages and wood products, exported goods valued at a record €18.98 billion, accounting for 9% of all the merchandised goods exported from Ireland. Farm-families and the products that they produce from the land contribute massively to this output.

While many challenges exist, it is clear that the output from our agricultural land is a critical part of Irish economic output.

The CAP Strategic Plan (CSP) launched in 2023 has a wide range of schemes to support farmers and to ensure that the valuable outputs from agriculture are produced in a sustainable manner both for the climate, environment and for farm-families. The range of schemes on offer ensures that each farm can choose a form and intensity of agriculture that best suits their land. Land must be managed, and while farmers may choose to modify the type and intensity of farming that they carry out, the abandonment of land is not supported.

In 2022, my department completed a detailed study of abandoned lands that were declared as farmed as part of the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS). Of the close to 1.2 million parcels declared as part of BPS only a very small number of parcels (<100) were found to be fully abandoned, with no farming activity taking place in the parcel. Based on these figures, it would be fair to say that instance of land abandonment is very low, almost negligible.

The abandonment of land, even at very low instances has important consequences. Many habitats in the Irish landscape require management in some form to thrive, such as meadows. Land abandonment, however small can lead to the loss of diverse habitats and the loss of supporting habitats for flora and fauna. This is particularly bad for those species with specific lifecycle needs. Land abandonment can result in a decline in species diversity and loss of landscape diversity leading to disruption in natural processes.

Lands that are abandoned can be prone to soil sedimentation leading to impacts on water quality, the spread of invasive species and the loss of important sites for migratory species. For my Department, it is important to recognise and support high nature value farming and extensive farmers and to ensure their vital roles as land managers is economically and socially sustainable in order to support their ongoing work to maintain environmental sustainability.