Farm Plan Scheme open for applications

The Farm Plan Scheme, which pays farmers to conserve and restore nature on their lands, is now open for 2025, Minister of State with responsibility for nature Malcolm Noonan has announced.

Run by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), the scheme pays farmers for the results they deliver and offers bespoke advice.

For the first time, farmers can choose between two streams within the scheme.

The traditional five-year management approach is still available, but there is now also a one-off ‘actions for nature’ option.

Minister Noonan said the scheme is hugely impactful for nature and farmers.

“The Farm Plan Scheme is a vital tool in the management of some of Ireland’s most important areas for nature and a valuable means of addressing the challenges facing biodiversity in Ireland, in partnership with the custodians of land,” he added.

With a 5 December 2024 deadline for applications, it is anticipated there will be a further 200 entrants in this tranche.

Since it began in 2006, over 1,000 farm plans have been created under the scheme, covering a variety of nature interests. Currently, there are 327 farm plans in place across the country.

Priority is offered to land in designated sites, such as Special Areas of Conservation (SAC), or where it can be confirmed habitats or species of conservation concern exist.

Project ReFarm

Separately, a new non-governmental initiative worth €1.3m has been launched to encourage farmers to develop ponds, hedgerows, woodlands and species-rich grasslands on their farms.

Project ReFarm is being launched on a pilot basis and will see farmers receive payments for initiating nature-positive actions.

The programme is a collaboration between biodiversity advocates, research teams at Trinity College Dublin, philanthropists and farmers across Ireland.

Its partners include Burrenbeo Trust and Community Foundation Ireland.