A major push is under way to ensure that farmland projects will qualify for flood relief works under the remit of the Office of Public Works (OPW).

A review of the Minor Works Scheme, operated by county councils nationwide but under guidelines set out by the OPW, is already under way by Sean Canney, Minister for State at Office of Public Works (OPW) and Flood Relief.

The IFA has proposed a total revamp of how agricultural land is treated in the OPW’s cost/benefit analysis which could see farmland flood relief works boosted up the rankings in priority.

Under the current system, the benefit of doing flood relief works on farmland is valued at a once-off €200/ac (€400/ha).

This value, the IFA maintains, does not account fully for the agricultural losses resulting from flooding over longer periods of time and does not take into account the potential loss of direct payments if no agricultural activity is undertaken.

Underestimates value

The farm organisation maintains that the OPW’s €200/ac valuation hugely underestimates the value of output on Irish farmland and does not take any account of the potential long-term benefits of undertaking the investment in flood relief works.

It has proposed that the calculation be updated to take into account longer term losses and that the losses be based on a three-year rolling average of the Teagasc National Farm Survey gross margin for farms. In 2015, the average gross margin in the survey was €1,120/ha. The IFA has also called for a value of €10,000 per building to be allocated to farm buildings when calculating the benefit of flood relief works.

Padraig Joyce, the IFA’s flood project team chair, called on Minister Canney “to move on this proposal to bring it to a satisfactory conclusion and ensure that farmland projects qualify for the Minor Works Scheme”.

Further talks between the farm organisation and Minister Canney’s department are expected in the coming weeks.