Details of how farmers will claim annual GLAS payments of up to €5,000 have become clearer with the release by the Department of Agriculture of specifications for the scheme’s 30 measures.

Minimum and maximum uptake for each measure, and payment rates, are included in the draft specifications given to planners, farm organisations and other relevant stakeholders by the Department of Agriculture.

Farmers with enough commonage or designated Natura land will be able to claim the maximum €5,000 payment without the complication of taking on further measures.

Likewise, there is no maximum uptake on other measures such as protection for farmland birds, riparian margins, minimum tillage and arable grass margins.

However, 10ha is the maximum uptake for two high-paying measures that were popular in AEOS: traditional hay meadow and low input permanent pasture. Neither of these measures alone would achieve full payment.

Farm Relief Services (FRS) has been selected to provide GLAS planning services for Teagasc clients.

A top-paying measure – wild bird cover at €900/ha – is limited to three hectares per farm.

Applicants with the most environmentally sensitive land, e.g. commonage, will have to take up related measures. Other farmers will have freer choice, but may take up specific measures to gain priority for entry should the scheme be oversubscribed.

Overall, the scheme has flexibility that will be welcomed by farmers. Next year’s opening date is not yet known, nor how many months’ payment will be made for 2015.

IFA Rural Development chairman Flor McCarthy said the payment levels and limits on measures were sufficiently high to ensure that most farmers could achieve the €5,000 maximum payment.

But he warned the Minister not to turn away any farmer making a valid application.

“Under the Minister’s current proposals, some farmers could have difficulty joining as they may not qualify for priority entry. The 30,000 farmers exiting REPS 4 by the end of 2014 must have a meaningful scheme available to them. Many farm families are very dependent on the agri-environment schemes.”

Meanwhile, Farm Relief Services (FRS) is on course to provide GLAS planning services for Teagasc clients. It has been selected as preferred bidder from among a number of candidates for the contract to carry out this work.

Once details are finalised and the deal is approved by the Teagasc board, the FRS is expected to immediately begin hiring additional staff to carry out the work.

More details on GLAS scheme - including specifiations table.