Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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273. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when a young farmer payment will issue to persons (details supplied). [5908/24]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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The persons named submitted applications to my Department under the 2023 Transfer of Entitlements, the Complementary Income Support for Young Farmers and also under the young farmer category of the National Reserve.

My Department is working to finalise the processing of these applications as soon as possible. The persons named will be notified of the outcome when this process is completed.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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Following exceptional flooding in the Shannon Callows during summer 2023, on 7 November 2023, I announced the launch of the Shannon Callows Flood Scheme. The aim of the scheme is to support farmers who have lost fodder due to flooding in the region during summer 2023. I have allocated funding of approximately €800,000 which will allow for a payment rate of up to €325 per hectare. This is for LPIS parcels in the Shannon Callows Special Area of Conservation (SAC) impacted as determined by my Department's Earth Observation team, utilising the Area Monitoring System, and which were claimed by farmers on their 2023 Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS) application.

My Department has contacted the farmers that the Earth Observation team, utilising the Area Monitoring System, identified as having been impacted by the flooding, providing them with a simple application form for them to sign and return if they wish to apply for the support. Farmers are asked to confirm they have lost fodder as a result of the exceptional flooding in order to receive payment.

A total of 230 expression of interest letters including the application form were issued on the 17 November 2023 and a further 47 expression of interest letters including the application form issued on the 7 December 2023, with 268 out of 277 paid as of 06 February 2024.

There were 85 farmers in the letter referred to by the Deputy. 13 of these received invitation letters from DAFM to participate in the scheme. 51 were in the analysis group, but did not receive an application form due to issues like having less than 1ha eligible, or not having flooding detected on enough occasions in the period. A further 21 had lands outside the Shannon Callows SAC and so were not eligible and did not receive an application form.

Where a farmer has not been contacted by the Department regarding the Shannon Callows Flood Scheme, they are not considered to have been eligible based on the analysis of the flooding data during the period 2 July 2023 to 29 September 2023.

For those who did not receive an application form the procedure for seeking an internal review, by the herdowner or their nominated or authorised agent, is available online in the Shannon Callows Flood Scheme Terms and Conditions under section 9 at gov.ie - Shannon Callows Flood Scheme 2023 (www.gov.ie).

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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Following exceptional flooding in the Shannon Callows during summer 2023, on 7 November 2023, I announced the launch of the Shannon Callows Flood Scheme. The aim of the scheme is to support farmers who have lost fodder due to flooding in the region during summer 2023. I have allocated funding of approximately €800,000 which will allow for a payment rate of up to €325 per hectare for LPIS parcels in the Shannon Callows Special Area of Conservation (SAC) impacted as determined by my Department's Area Monitoring System and which were claimed by farmers on their 2023 Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS) application.

My Department have contacted the farmers that the Area Monitoring System has identified as having been impacted by the flooding, providing them with a simple application form for them to sign and return if they wish to apply for the support. Farmers are asked to confirm they have lost fodder as a result of the exceptional flooding in order to receive payment.

A total of 230 expression of interest letters including the application form were issued on the 17 November 2023 and a further 47 expression of interest letters including the application form issued on the 7 December 2023, with 268 out of 277 paid as of 06 February 2024.

For those who did not receive an application form, the procedure for seeking an internal review, by the herdowner or their nominated or authorised agent, is available online in the Shannon Callows Flood Scheme Terms and Conditions under section 9 at gov.ie - Shannon Callows Flood Scheme 2023 (www.gov.ie)

To date, 64 requests for review have been received from farmers who were not identified by DAFM as having lands which were flooded in late summer 2023 in the Shannon Callows SAC. My officials are currently processing these requests and a decision on the outcome of these reviews will shortly issue to the herdowners concerned.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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Following exceptional flooding in the Shannon Callows during summer 2023, on 7 November 2023, I announced the launch of the Shannon Callows Flood Scheme. The aim of the scheme is to support farmers who have lost fodder due to flooding in the region during summer 2023. I have allocated funding of approximately €800,000 which will allow for a payment rate of up to €325 per hectare. This is for LPIS parcels in the Shannon Callows Special Area of Conservation (SAC) impacted as determined by my Department's Earth Observation team, utilising the Area Monitoring System, and which were claimed by farmers on their 2023 Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS) application.

My Department contacted the farmers that the Earth Observation team, utilising the Area Monitoring System, identified as having been impacted by the flooding and provided them with a simple application form to sign and return if they wished to apply for the support.

Farmers are asked to confirm they have lost fodder as a result of the exceptional flooding in order to receive payment.

Using Copernicus Sentinel satellite data to identify those most impacted represents the most appropriate mechanism to verify the baseline criteria required to establish eligibility for the scheme and to ensure much needed funds are received by farmers in a prompt manner. Imagery captured by the Copernicus Sentinel satellites, utilising a flooding marker, provides clear identification of flooding in the Shannon Callows SAC between 02 July 2023 and the 29 September 2023.

The OPW flood maps are based on historical flooding events and as such are insufficient for the purposes of confirming flooding of LPIS parcels within the Shannon Callows SAC during the timeframe of 02 July 2023 to 29 September 2023.

Similarly, using winter Sentinel 1 survey data does not confirm flooding of parcels within the Shannon Callows SAC during the timeframe of 02 July 2023 to 29 September 2023, but rather confirms that these lands are subject to flood events, with seasonal flooding being a feature of the Shannon Callows.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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277. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when a payment under the ECO scheme will issue to a farmer in County Galway (details supplied); the reason for the delay in issuing said payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5959/24]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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My Department has reviewed the BISS application for herd G1204067. There was a delay with processing the application due to a verification of commonage lands. The application has now been cleared and payment will issue shortly.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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278. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when a payment under ACRES will be issued to a farmer in County Galway (details supplied); the reason for the delay in issuing said payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5995/24]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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The person named is among those in the ACRES Co-operation Project stream awaiting payments.

The level of environmental ambition within ACRES and the scaling up of a results-based system brings with it many opportunities for farmers, but is not without its challenges. ACRES Co-operation Project payments are more complex to administer and work is ongoing in this regard, with every effort being made to deliver payments as quickly as possible, including to the person named.