ACRES (Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme) is Ireland’s new 5 year agri-environment climate scheme proposed as part of Ireland’s draft CAP Strategic Plan. This new €1.5 billion flagship agri-environment scheme will be a farmer-friendly scheme to help address biodiversity decline while delivering an income support for up to 50,000 farm families in Ireland.
Two Approaches.
- General Approach:
Available nationally (outside of the high priority geographical area as defined for the ACRES Co-operation approach below), which will offer a range of actions for individual farmers to be undertaken.
- Co-operation approach:
Available to farmers in defined high priority geographical areas, which will involve results-based payments, as well as bespoke farm and landscape actions. Farmers participating in this approach will have the assistance of a Local Cooperation Project (CP) Team, who will assist with implementation of the scheme at local level.
Applications will be ranked into three tiers.
Tier 1
To qualify for Tier 1, the applicant must commit to completing mandatory actions relevant to the Priority Environmental Assets (PEA) on their holding.
These PEAs include: private natura; commonage; geese and swans area; breeding wader mapped areas; and catchments identified as having high status water.
Registered organic farmers will also qualify for priority access under this Tier.
Tier 2
Farmers whose lands include a Vulnerable Water Area may apply for access to the scheme under Tier 2.
Applicants may also be considered if they are in the Native Woodland Establishment Scheme or GPC 11 — Agro-forestry or if they adopt at least one of the tree planting actions.
Or if they have a whole farm stocking rate exceeding 130kg livestock manure nitrogen/ha produced on the holding.
Or if they have more than 30ha of arable crops, they must adopt at least one of the following actions:
minimum tillage; catch crops; over-winter stubble; grass margins arable or grass margins grassland; low-input peat grassland.
Tier 3
Farmers in Tier 3 will be last to get access to the scheme and will undertake various actions outlined by the Department.
Application:
- All applications for the scheme must be prepared and completed by an approved FAS Advisor
- Completion of a Farm Sustainability Plan. The purpose of the FSP is to assist in locating ‘the right action in the right place’. It is a combination of desk and field assessments where advisors assess the environmental assets/risks and conservation targets on the holding.
Payments:
| ACREs Measure | Farmer Payment (Maximum) |
| General Measure | €7,311 |
| Cooperation Measure | €10,500 (Including €3,500 for NPI’s and Landscape Actions) |
Closing date 15th November – Contact OCAE Consultants for more information
