DAFM hoping to have GAEC 2 appeals system in place next month
Michael Moloney, senior inspector in the integrated controls division of the department, was speaking at an Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) meeting in Co. Kerry last night (Tuesday, May 27).
GAEC 2 is the conditionality standard of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) related to the protection of peatlands and wetlands.
It formally entered into force on May 1, which means that any works carried out before that date do not come under the scope of the condition.
GAEC 2
Moloney reiterated that there are no additional actions for a farmer and they can continue to farm as normal under GAEC 2.
Under the condition, the senior inspector said that the maintenance of an existing drain on is permitted and replacement is acceptable.
However, he said that new drainage on never-drained parcels of land will require planning permission or an exemption from the local authority, as is currently the case under national legislation.
He added that the deepening of existing drains or the extension of the drained area beyond what was previously existed is considered new drainage.
Michael Moloney, senior inspector with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM)
Moloney told the meeting that ploughing on GAEC 2 lands is permitted to a maximum depth of 30cm on grass and arable land, which he said should not impact on farmers.
Under GAEC 2, ploughing for reseeding grassland will be permitted one in every four years and annual ploughing is allowed on arable land.
Appeals
Approximately 35,000 farmers have been contacted by DAFM in relation to the 540,000ha covered by GAEC 2.
Farmers or their advisors can check if their land is covered by the condition through the AgFood online portal.
'There will be an appeals mechanism established. We will have that out in due course, hopefully early next month. Farmers can appeal it.
'They'll have to provide evidence of soil samples etc., showing that there isn't 30% organic matter and the depth of the peat is not 30-45cm.
'The only person who really needs to appeal this is those that basically want to do something on this undrained soils in 2025.
'We'll prioritise those because we don't have the capacity to deal with a large number of people or appeals that just want to appeal it for the sake of it,' he said.
Moloney noted that GAEC 2 is part of the current CAP cycle and may or may not be part of the post-2027 CAP.
The DAFM senior inspector said that lands covered by GAEC 2 do not carry any legal designation, such as Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) or Special Protection Areas (SPAs)
'GAEC 2 is not a designation, it is a classification for the basis of conditionality and it is baseline or minimum,' he said.
Kerry IFA chair Jason Fleming said it is a 'massive inconvenience' for farmers having to apply for planning permission for new drains or deepening existing drains on GAEC 2 lands.
'I know you don't like using the word designation, but it feels to us like a form of designation,' he said.
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