Rural Developement Programme - the future of natural meadows threatened

Nature protection organizations express their incomprehension about the reduced payment for of biologically valuable grasslands foreseen by the Rural Development Programme 2007-2013. In the draft version of the programme it is foreseen that in future for mowing will be paid 138 euros instead of former 55 euros. It can seriously endanger the further existence of biologically valuable grasslands.

Rural Developement Programme - the future of natural meadows threatened

Nature protection organizations express their incomprehension about the reduced payment for of biologically valuable grasslands foreseen by the Rural Development Programme 2007-2013. In the draft version of the programme it is foreseen that in future for mowing will be paid 138 euros instead of former 55 euros. It can seriously endanger the further existence of biologically valuable grasslands.

Open letter to the Minister of Agriculture and a position document from Latvian Fund for Nature, Latvian Ornithological Society and Entomological Society of Latvia are available on Latvian here

The agro-environmental chapter of the current version of the Rural Development Programme (RDP) (the Ministry of Agriculture sent it to working groups on August 18, 2006) foresees that in future two payments of different size will be paid for one managed hectare of natural meadows: 55 euros for mowing or 118 euro for extensive grazing or mowing for forage. Previously, not depending on the action type, the payment was bigger - 138 euros per hectare.

As explains the expert of the Latvian Fund for Nature Viesturs Lārmanis, reduction of the payment in many occasions will make the maintenance of biologically valuable grasslands unfavourable. This payment must include not only direct management costs. The farmer must be motivated not to choose to do something else in this place, for example, to make arable lands or on the contrary - not to do anything. In both cases, it would be a destruction of the biologically valuable grasslands. If the particular amount of support to the farmer will not be motivating, he will choose other options. Therefore, it is important to look at the size of the support in context with other payments and possibilities.

The expert of the Latvian Fund for Nature Ainārs Auniņš added: “Already now in many places it is not enough to cover the actual expenses with a 138 Euros payment per hectare. Management of

Management of natural

grasslands takes a lot of

time and energy resources

meadows in each place can differ. In terms of biological diversity, very often most valuable meadows are located in places that are very difficult to access; they have complicated configuration or wet conditions that make the management more difficult. The time of mowing of one hectare varies from half an hour in intensively manageable, geometrically precise and flat meadow to a whole working day in a natural meadow.”

In terms of the Latvian agricultural branch we are speaking about a very small but a very important part for conservation of biological diversity. For now 56 188 ha of biologically valuable grasslands have been explored in Latvia. According to the information of the annual report of the Rural Support Service published in 2005, last year less than a half of all the areas were managed. The rest of the territories continue to overgrow, in this turn in some places meadows have already been tilled, because it was more beneficial. Reduction of the current payment amount will cause a crisis in this system especially referring to the manageable territories. As known, conservation of biologically valuable grasslands for farmers was not mandatory, therefore the compulsory payment is the only an instrument that could promote it.

For comparison, according to the data of the foreign cooperation projects of environmental protection organizations, in France for maintenance of biologically valuable grassland 420 EUR/ha are paid, but in other countries: Finland until 400 EUR/ha, Belgium around 330 EUR/ha, Germany - 200 EUR/ha. In each country is a different situation, also management conditions, traditions and methods differ. However, in the European Council Regulation has been stated the amount that this payment should not exceed when using EU funds - 450 EUR/ha.

Natural grassland at Pededze River

The Ministry of Agriculture now supports the project of determining new biologically valuable grasslands; this is a contributory measure of exploration of natural meadows with a positive contribution into their conservation. Nevertheless, the planned reduction of maintenance payment works the other way round and thus makes the exploration of new areas useless. In the framework of international contracts, Latvia has bound oneself to ensure advantageous conservation status to rare species and habitats according to the requirements of the Birds and Habitats Directives of the European Union. Agro-environmental payments are the only financial instrument of the European Union that helps to ensure this status in agricultural lands. Conservationists allow elaboration of differential payment system for biologically valuable grasslands in accordance with the difficulty level of management conditions. However, while it has not been done, till now the applied payment of 138 EUR/ha may not be reduced.

It should be mentioned that in the current RDP wording several topical suggestions about conservation of biological diversity submitted by the working group of experts created by the Latvian Fund for Nature, the Latvian Ornithological Society and the Entomological Society of Latvia were not taken into account. It is ready for a further dialogue and invites the authors of the plan to take into account the previously submitted suggestions.

The mission of the management of biologically valuable grasslands is conservation of biological diversity that is carried out with the means of the European Society. Therefore, the product of natural meadows is not milk, meat or tons of hay, but in interests of our next generations - conserved natural meadow habitats, diversity of species and landscape. For the time being our public servants have to settle, whether conservation of environmental diversity in future will be an economically viable alternative for intensive agriculture or just an unwanted burden from which farmers will try to get rid off as soon as possible.

In many places natural grasslands are ploughed already - because of economical interest...

..but many valuable teriitories are becoming overgrown even more with shrubs.

Andris Klepers

Phone: +3717830999, e-mail: Andris.klepers at ldf.lv