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The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue, T.D., has announced today that GLAS plus (GLAS+) balancing payments will commence this week. This announcement means that almost €700,000 in GLAS+ balancing payments will be made to over 3,200 participants in the Green Low-carbon Agri-environment Scheme (GLAS).

The balancing payment represents the final 15% of the 2020 GLAS+ payment and completes the total payment for GLAS actions undertaken in 2020.

Announcing the issue of the payments, the Minister commented, “I am very pleased to be in a position to commence these GLAS+ balancing payments this week to over 3,200 farmers. This cohort of GLAS participants have undertaken exceptional environmental commitments and are rewarded under GLAS with an additional annual payment of up to €2,000 in respect of 2020.”

The Minister added, “Today’s payment of €700,000 brings to over €1 billion the total payments made to date in respect of GLAS. I am also pleased to note that over 96% of GLAS participants have now been paid in full in respect of their 2020 GLAS commitments.”

Payments will continue to issue in any outstanding cases. The Minister encouraged any farmers with outstanding queries to respond promptly to the Department to facilitate the issue of payments.

This important agri-environment scheme continues to deliver in line with the Department’s  Action Plan 2021 underpinning all goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reverse biodiversity decline. The scheme will deliver significant levels of environmental dividends this year including the targeting of vulnerable landscapes (including commonages), the protection of specific identified bird species and high-status watercourses. Other returns from GLAS include the protection of over 60,000 hectares of traditional hay meadows, the protection of over 5,500 archaeological monuments, planting and maintenance of over 1.1m metres of new hedgerows, the provision of bird, bat and bee nesting facilities, and the planting and maintenance of over 1.5m trees.

Note for editors:

GLAS Division can be contacted by email at GLAS@agriculture.gov.ie  .

The Department’s Statement of Strategy (2021 – 2024) and Action Plan 2021 can be viewed on the Department’s website at the following address: www.gov.ie/en/publication/a9d51-statement-of-strategy-2021-2024/