Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 4 May 2017
28. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will ensure that as part of the review of the areas of natural constraint, designated areas assessments will be based on townlands and not district electoral divisions. [20877/17]
View answerUnder the Rural Development Regulation each Member State must designate areas eligible for payments under the Areas of Natural Constraints (ANC) scheme. The ANC scheme replaces the previous Disadvantaged Areas Scheme / Less Favoured Areas Scheme. The designation of eligible areas under these schemes to date has been based on a range of socio-economic factors. From 2018 eligible areas must instead be designated using a set list of bio-physical criteria. In cases where a Member State does not introduce this new system for payment, the old scheme remains in place but payments must phase out on a digressive basis.
The biophysical criteria set out in the legislation to underpin the new system of designation are:
- Low temperature
- Dryness
- Excess soil moisture
- Limited soil drainage
- Unfavourable texture and stoniness
- Shallow rooting depth
- Poor chemical properties
- Steep slope.
My Department has commenced work on this project, and relevant technical experts are currently working on sourcing and analysing the data in relation to the new criteria. Department officials have also been in contact with the Joint Research Centre (JRC) and DG Agri in the EU Commission in relation to technical issues arising. Over the coming months this analysis will identify areas deemed to be facing natural constraints, which will in parallel be subjected to a refinement process. It is envisaged that stakeholders will be consulted as this process develops.
In relation to the use of townlands as opposed to District Electoral Division (DED), the Rural Development Regulation sets out that LAU2 should be the basis for designation. This is equivalent to DED in the Irish context. There is some scope for flexibility on this issue, and my Department is engaging with the Commission on this issue with a view to ensuring the most technically robust basis for designation.
