Side-trimming hedges and the planting of pollinator strips have been embraced by dairy farmers in Cork and Waterford who make up a 40-strong group in the Biodiversity Regeneration in a Dairying Environment (BRIDE) project.

The project is co-funded by the European Union and the Department of Agriculture through the European Innovation Partnership and project manager Donal Sheehan explained it was primarily about putting a value on biodiversity on farms. The average farm size is 45ha, with a mix of farm types from dairy to tillage. The dairy herd size ranges from 40 to 400.

Treadmill

“There was a focus on expansion and our biodiversity was disappearing. We were on a treadmill and this was an attempt to put the brakes on,” Sheehan explained.

He continued that he wasn’t surprised by the strong uptake and knew farmers would be interested once the project was explained to them.

“There was a mode of thinking that farmers thought they had to let their farms go wild but it was never about that,” he said.

“Farmers are paid on a results basis. Some are putting in ponds or we ask that they only side-trim hedges, put in new hedges or leave a pollinator plot 100m long and 2m wide along margins.”

The project covers the river Bride region and has secured funding until 2023.

Sheehan runs the project in tandem with administrator Sinead Hickey and the help of ecologist Tony Nagle, and he hopes the project can be continued and expanded after this pilot period.

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