Agricultural Catchments Programme working with Irish Farmers

IRISH farmers are working with the Teagasc run Agricultural Catchments Programme to maintain and improve water quality. A new series of videos is being released, featuring some of the farmers and highlighting the practices they have adopted to ensure they farm in harmony with the environment. The first of these videos is published today with more released in the next few months.

Farmers have played a key role in the Agricultural Catchments Programme (ACP) here in Ireland for many years. There are over 300 farming families participating in this Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) funded project. The ACP is comprised of 6 catchments, or areas drained by a spring or stream, where farming is the main land use. These catchments are located in different parts of the country and are representative of the main farming systems across Ireland.

ACP manager, Edward Burgess, said: “The ACP is a combined research and advisory programme investigating the impact of agriculture and water quality. Its success is dependent on the cooperation of the 300 plus farmers in the catchments and we are extremely grateful for their support.”

A series of six videos are scheduled to be released that give a thorough look at how farmers in Ireland are using the ACP to improve their land management, water usage and quality, and overall productivity. Four videos will focus on different Irish farmers and how they work with the ACP to benefit their land and water, and prepare it for future generations. The remaining videos will focus on the integrated team of researchers, advisors and technicians that make up the ACP, and its collaboration with other organisations.

The first video will be released through various Teagasc social media platforms today, Friday, 1 June, and the other 5 videos will be released periodically throughout the next few months.