The deadline for advisers to submit ACRES scorecards for results-based actions under the scheme has been extended by four weeks.

On Friday evening 28 July, Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue confirmed a new deadline date of Friday 29 September 2023.

Announcing the extension, the Minister said ACRES is aimed at addressing a range of climate, water and biodiversity objectives and that the results-based approach is a key driver of the environmental ambition of the scheme.

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“My Department, together with the ACRES co-operation teams, has already trained over 600 advisers on submitting scorecards and completed scorecards are being submitted to my Department daily.

ACRES advisers will now have more time to submit the results-based scorecards for their farmer clients. \ Ramona Farrelly

“Just under 40% of all scorecards have been submitted already and this is testament to the commitment of the advisers and farmers to this task, which is the first time the scoring of agricultural land has been carried out to such a scale,” he added.

Submission deadline

Minister McConalogue said that given the importance of getting these baseline scores submitted in this first year of the scheme and acknowledging the extra workload it creates for advisers, he opted to extend the submission deadline.

“This will allow advisers to plan their work over the next eight weeks. It’s essential now that all advisers continue to engage with their ACRES clients and work to have the necessary scorecards completed as soon as possible,” he explained.