Farmers whose lands have been burned due to wildfires have been urged to take prompt action to protect the direct payments linked to affected ground.
The current position adopted by the Department of Agriculture is that burned land is ineligible for CAP payments.
“In relation to CAP payments, the critical advice to farmers is that if you have land burned then don’t ignore this as there is a high likelihood that this could impact your CAP payments next autumn,” said Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association (INHFA) president Vincent Roddy.
ADVERTISEMENT
He said farmers should take the following action if they have had land burned:
Provide evidence that the fire has been reported to An Garda Siochána.
Request that the Department considers the eligibility of the burned land under force majeure or exceptional circumstances.
The request must be in writing at the time of your planner making your Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS) application, in the notes section of the online application.
If BISS has already been submitted then farmers must inform the Department in writing within 15 working days of the date of the burning.
Roddy rejected as “lazy and ill-informed” the narrative that farmers were to blame for wildfires.
“Farmers are well aware of the negative consequences of wildfires especially for wildlife but also in terms of reduced fodder supplies and the high risk to their CAP payments,” he said.
Roddy described the Department position that all burned land was ineligible for CAP payments as blatantly unfair, and he said the INHFA was continuing to engage with the Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon on this matter.
Register for free to read this story and our free stories.
This content is available to digital subscribers and loyalty code users only. Sign in to your account, use the code or subscribe to get unlimited access.
The reader loyalty code gives you full access to the site from when you enter it until the following Wednesday at 9pm. Find your unique code on the back page of Irish Country Living every week.
CODE ACCEPTED
You have full access to the site until next Wednesday at 9pm.
CODE NOT VALID
Please try again or contact support.
Farmers whose lands have been burned due to wildfires have been urged to take prompt action to protect the direct payments linked to affected ground.
The current position adopted by the Department of Agriculture is that burned land is ineligible for CAP payments.
“In relation to CAP payments, the critical advice to farmers is that if you have land burned then don’t ignore this as there is a high likelihood that this could impact your CAP payments next autumn,” said Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association (INHFA) president Vincent Roddy.
He said farmers should take the following action if they have had land burned:
Provide evidence that the fire has been reported to An Garda Siochána.
Request that the Department considers the eligibility of the burned land under force majeure or exceptional circumstances.
The request must be in writing at the time of your planner making your Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS) application, in the notes section of the online application.
If BISS has already been submitted then farmers must inform the Department in writing within 15 working days of the date of the burning.
Roddy rejected as “lazy and ill-informed” the narrative that farmers were to blame for wildfires.
“Farmers are well aware of the negative consequences of wildfires especially for wildlife but also in terms of reduced fodder supplies and the high risk to their CAP payments,” he said.
Roddy described the Department position that all burned land was ineligible for CAP payments as blatantly unfair, and he said the INHFA was continuing to engage with the Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon on this matter.
If you would like to speak to a member of our team, please call us on 01-4199525.
Link sent to your email address
We have sent an email to your address. Please click on the link in this email to reset your password. If you can't find it in your inbox, please check your spam folder. If you can't find the email, please call us on 01-4199525.
ENTER YOUR LOYALTY CODE:
The reader loyalty code gives you full access to the site from when you enter it until the following Wednesday at 9pm. Find your unique code on the back page of Irish Country Living every week.
SHARING OPTIONS