Scottish Government have announced a reduced menu of options for the 2023 Agri-Environment Climate Scheme (AECS) as organic conversion is prioritised.
The major aim of the 2023 AECS is to target and support Scottish Governments ambition to double the amount of land under organic management by 2026.
But that prioritisation comes at the expense of previously popular measures such as improving public access, bracken control, drystone dyke maintenance, muirburn and heather control.
These measures are no longer eligible. Support for hedgerow creation has also been also been capped.
There is, however, to be an additional 5 million of funding under the Agriculture Transformation Fund (ATF) for slurry storage improvements.
NFU Scotland director of policy Jonnie Hall said: AECS continues to play a fundamental part in supporting Scottish farmers and crofters in delivering our response to climate change and biodiversity loss.
We welcome the announcement of 680 successful applications under AECS 2022 sharing some 14 million.
The opening of AECS 2023 has seen our concerns that budgets and measures would, once again, be pared back realised.
While there is a strong emphasis on organic conversation a number of popular measures have been removed, he said.
This is disappointing as agri-environment actions can deliver significant benefits without overcomplicated and costly prescriptions.
The absence of improving public access is a significant blow, given the ongoing need to ensure safe and responsible access for all those that want to enjoy Scotlands rich and varied landscape.
Moreover, there does not appear to be any commitment on the levels of funding that will be available for AECS 2023, but it is apparent from the pared back options that funding levels, when announced, are likely to disappoint.
On a positive note, we have been lobbying for dedicated funding to be made available to support storage for slurry and digestate so we welcome the dedicated ATF funding for this.
The 5 million, to be accessed via existing AECS routes, is a significant step towards helping a significant number of businesses to sector to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve efficiency through the period of transition to meet the requirements of The Water Environment (Controlled Activities) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2021.
Rural Affairs Secretary Mairi Gougeon said: AECS continues to play a significant role in making Scotland a global leader in sustainable and regenerative agriculture.
Our 14 million of support will help hundreds of farmers, land managers and world-class producers to thrive, while backing our climate change agenda and our response to the biodiversity crisis.
The 5 million in additional support we are announcing today will also help improve the management of slurry and digestate on farms, helping to reduce harmful ammonia emissions.
The Agri-Environment Climate Scheme (AECS) 2023 round application window opens for slurry storage January 30 and closes on March 24. For agri-environment and organic measures it opens on January 30 and closes on June 7.
