Your chance to help design ELMS

[TFF]

Environmental Land Management - Defra Director answers Farming Forum members questions about the new scheme

 

[TFF]

What is ELM?
You may have already heard that ELM is founded on the principle of public money for public goods. Basically, this means that farmers, foresters and other land managers will be rewarded for delivering environmental benefits, including:

• clean air
• clean and plentiful water
• thriving plants and wildlife
• protection from and mitigation of environmental hazards
• beauty, heritage and engagement
• mitigation of and adaptation to climate change.

What could a 3 tier scheme look like?

Your feedback so far helped us to refine the design of the scheme and advised us that the ELM scheme should be split into 3 distinct tiers.
Each of the tiers will be optimised to work for farmers, foresters and other land managers from different background, with different levels of experience, and to help us achieve the range environmental outcomes. We want to hear what you think about the suggested tiers.

This is how we propose the tiers may look…

TIER 1

What is it: a tier to focus on incentivising sustainable farming and forestry

Who is it for: All farmers

Examples of what we could pay for:

• nutrient management
• pest management
• livestock management
• soil management
• field margins (buffer strips)
• field cover (cover crops)
• water storage/efficient water use.

Do you think you may fall into this tier? We want to hear from you.

TIER 2

What is it: the management of land in a way that delivers locally targeted environmental outcomes, delivering the right things in the right places
Who is it for: All land managers

Examples of what we could pay for:

• tree, shrub and/or hedge planting and maintenance
• habitat creation/restoration/ management (including woodland, wetlands, freshwater, peatland, heathland, species-rich grassland, coastal habitat, urban green space)
• instream/river and overland flow attenuation and diversion (natural flood management)
• species management, for example, introduction, translocation and/or recovery and invasive species prevention/control
• rights of way, navigation and recreation infrastructure
• education events and services
• geodiversity and heritage asset management

Do you think this tier sounds of interest? Then we want to hear from you.

TIER 3

What is it: larger scale land-use change projects making a substantial contribution to specific government commitments
Who is it for: All land managers (but eligibility likely to be decided on a project by project basis)

Examples of projects we could pay for:

• forest and woodland creation/restoration/improve-ment
• peatland restoration
• creation/restoration of coastal habitats such as wetlands and salt marsh

Do you think you may be ready to take on this challenge? Make sure to have your say in our discussion document.

How we are co-designing the scheme and timescales

We are committed to co-designing ELM with you to create a scheme that allows business to thrive whilst delivering environmental benefits.
Tests and trials started in 2018 to enable us to co-design the scheme with farmers, foresters and other land managers. We are gathering feedback about specific elements of the scheme and delivery methods to ensure it suits the diverse needs of the agricultural sector while protecting and improving our environment.
The responses we’ll receive in this ELM discussion will help us design the detailed scheme design for both our National Pilot, which is due to start in late 2021, and for the start of the ELM scheme in 2024.

We will be running a series of webinars to give farmers, foresters and land managers the opportunity to find out more about the proposals and discuss them in person.
Sign up now.

This of course will not be the end of our engagement. We will continue to work closely with our stakeholders through the Tests and Trials Programme, the National Pilot and full ELM delivery, to make sure that this is a scheme that works for farmers, foresters and other land managers.

The National Pilot will begin in late 2021 and run for 3 years. We’ll pilot ELM across all regions in England with a range of land managers to see how different agreements, incentives and mechanics work on the ground.

The full scheme will then start being rolled out in late 2024. The proposed 7-year transition period gives farmers, foresters and other land managers time to adapt.
Our current plan is for new Countryside Stewardship (CS) agreements to continue for the next few years, with the last CS agreements starting in January 2024 to allow for a smooth transition to the ELM scheme.

Apply for CS now to be best prepared for the future.

 

[tepapa]

6 sets of environmental outcomes to spend the money on. Not one is food production. I hope farmers are taking note.

 

[Clive]

6 sets of environmental outcomes to spend the money on. Not one is food production. I hope farmers are taking note.

why get so hung up over this? Clearly we have other products to sell that many are currently giving away, unlike food many of those products can not be imported either so we have no competition!

 

[Brisel]

6 sets of environmental outcomes to spend the money on. Not one is food production. I hope farmers are taking note.

The clue is in the title...

 

[Brisel]

Will farmer led clusters feature in Tier 3 for landscape level benefits?

 

[tepapa]

The clue is in the title...

I know but this is the replacement for current ag subsidy for which it was previously production and latterly land ownership.

 

[Jdunn55]

6 sets of environmental outcomes to spend the money on. Not one is food production. I hope farmers are taking note.

Took note a while. The government couldn't care less about us. They care about votes we have few, the general public have plenty. The general public like the idea of environmental schemes.

Farmers are just a thorn in the governments side, if they could buy all the land and put it all into woodland they would.

 

[Clive]

if they could buy all the land and put it all into woodland they would.

Well, I guess they could .......... but they haven't! and even if they did they would still need people to create and manage it

Farmers have a roll in the future I have no doubt but that role (as ever has been the case ) is constantly changing

 

[bobk]

This puts the fear of god in me

• 
  rights of way, navigation and recreation infrastructure

 

[delilah]

What's that deer whispering in your ear ?

"more trees, Clive, go on, tell him, more trees" ?

edit, just spent 16 minutes staring at it, its not a deer its a calf lol.

 

[Sid]

Only 35% of farmers have an Agri environment scheme that claim BPS, that's a massive ambition to get all involved!

 

[Wombat]

Only 35% of farmers have an Agri environment scheme that claim BPS, that's a massive ambition to get all involved!

When you read all the issue people have getting paid on here is there any wonder. Getting BPS on time seems to be a struggle here so very reluctant to sign up to anymore random payment schedules

 

[Jdunn55]

Well, I guess they could .......... but they haven't! and even if they did they would still need people to create and manage it

Farmers have a roll in the future I have no doubt but that role (as ever has been the case ) is constantly changing

They couldnt because it would cost 230,700,000,000 just to buy the land let alone manage and implement as you say.

Our role is the governments puppet and they are hoping elms can become the strings to our limbs.

 

[Bertie]

Will farmer led clusters feature in Tier 3 for landscape level benefits?

Yes, Tier 3 is aimed at 'Landscape Scale' projects, it sounds as if they won't want to talk to individual farmers irrespective of their scale

 

[steveR]

Environmental Land Management - Defra Director answers Farming Forum members questions about the new scheme

Hooray. That';s my evening viewing sorted

 

[Clive]

They couldnt because it would cost 230,700,000,000 just to buy the land let alone manage and implement as you say.

Our role is the governments puppet and they are hoping elms can become the strings to our limbs.

its a government - if they REALLY wanted they could just take it from you!

And as in other threads money is theoretical when you can legally print the stuff!

 

[steveR]

When you read all the issue people have getting paid on here is there any wonder. Getting BPS on time seems to be a struggle here so very reluctant to sign up to anymore random payment schedules

Plunging incomes might make one or two change their policies?

 

[Clive]

Hooray. That';s my evening viewing sorted

16 mins of it at least !

 

[steveR]

16 mins of it at least !

Is that all he managed.... Wow!!

But thanks anyway for acting as our unofficial (and unpaid) representative Clive.