Western Morning News (Saturday)
Thousands of farmers sign up to ELM schemes
MORE than a third of Devon’s farmers have signed up to take part in new naturefriendly support schemes.
Figures released by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) show that there are 4,126 Countryside Stewardship and Environmental Stewardship agreements in place in the county – accounting for more than one in 10 of the agreements across England – helping farms to look after and improve the environment.
This means that around 40% of farmers in Devon are already signed up to the scheme.
Elsewhere in the South West, there are 1,774 agreements in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly and 2,682 across Dorset and Somerset combined.
Countryside Stewardship is part of the Government’s Environmental
Land Management (ELM) schemes, and provides financial incentives for farmers, foresters and land managers to protect and enhance the natural environment while also supporting sustainable food production.
According to Defra, there are about 40,000 Countryside and Environmental Stewardship agreements, covering about 34% of agricultural land. Participation in Countryside Stewardship specifically has grown in recent years with around 32,000 agreements – a 94% increase from January 2020.
A spokesperson said: “By 2028, we plan to increase this to at least 70,000 in our schemes, covering 70% of farmed land and 70% of all farms, so that farmers and land managers can collectively deliver our ambitious targets for the environment and climate, alongside food production.”
The Government adds that it is “building on the popularity of the schemes”, with more options available for farmers to choose from and the introduction of ‘Countryside Stewardship Plus’ to reward farmers for taking “coordinated action”, working with neighbouring farms and landowners to deliver “bigger and better results”.
“For those farmers not yet involved the application windows are currently open, with improvements to the application process to cut down on paperwork, applications and payments being processed faster than ever, and increased payment rates.”
The roll out of the ELM schemes comes as the Government undertakes its most significant reform of agricultural policy and spending in England in decades, moving away from the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and acreage-based
financial support under the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS). Direct subsidy payments are gradually being phased out over a seven-year period, with reductions starting in 2021 and continuing until 2028. Countryside Stewardship is one of three schemes designed to reward farmers for delivering ‘public goods’ and services, such as creating and restoring a broad range of wildlife-rich habitat, improving water quality, planting new woodlands and reducing carbon emissions. The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) will offer payments to farmers to carry out farming activities in a more “environmentally sustainable way”, whilst Landscape Recovery will pay for “longer-term, larger scale projects”.