FEARS over the impact of a ‘rewetting’ programme on Irish farmland – which would have a major impact on the West and Midlands region – has prompted the IFA to call a national meeting on the issue tonight [Thursday].

Farmers from across the country are expected to attend the meeting in the Hodson Bay Hotel, Athlone at 8pm, with the Minister for Agriculture, Martin Heydon, also invited to attend.

The latest fears on rewetting policies have been sparked off by an internal Dept. of Agriculture meeting towards the end of February involving experts from the Environmental Protection Agency [EPA], National Parks and Wildlife Service [NPWS] and Teagasc.

Following details of the meeting being published in last week’s Irish Farmers Journal, the Dept. of Agriculture issued a statement to the Agriland website in which they ‘insisted’ than any land restoration or rewetting of drained farm peatlands would be ‘entirely voluntary’.

In that statement, the Dept. of Agriculture, said that the meeting held last month, to which farming organisations were not invited, was an ‘exploratory workshop’. “Any proposals would be guided by the principle that they would be entirely voluntary in nature,” the Dept. told Agriland.

However, IFA Deputy President, Alice Doyle, said that farmers needed to be kept full informed about what was going on as regards the rewetting policy.

“Most of these issues are resulting from decisions made by the previous Government and the previous EU Commission. However, the new Government and Commission seem to be hellbent on implementing all of these measures, despite promises of simplification and reduced bureaucracy.

“These measures threaten to wipe out commercial farming and devalue land at the stroke of a pen,” said Alice Doyle.

Galway IFA Chair, Stephen Canavan, said that as well as all measures having to be voluntary as regards as rewetting proposals, it was also critical than rewetting measures being undertaken by a farmer would not impact on neighbouring farmeers.

“We were assured that no private land would be rewetted before 2040 and that there were enough public lands to meet any targets. Under no circumstances will be tolerate any change or deviation from that policy.

“Without the full co-operation and landowners these policies cannot help. We want the Department to come clean with us and to tell us what’s going on,” Stephen Canavan told the Farming Tribune.

Tonight’s meeting in Athlone will also deal with BISS Conditionality, reduced intensity farming, the ongoing delays with ACRES payments and GAEC [Good Agricultural and Environmental Condition] 2 lands.

Pictured: Alice Doyle: Measures are a real threat to farming.