Mineral soils decision a 'land grab' - Mayo TD

THE government’s decision to include mineral soils under GAEC 2 has been called a blatant land grab that unfairly targets 35,000 farmers across rural Ireland.

Mayo Aontú TD Paul Lawless is calling on the Minister for Agriculture, Martin Heydon, to reverse this deeply unjust policy and engage with the farming community.

“The Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association (INHFA) has done tremendous work in exposing this injustice, and I fully support their efforts in bringing this issue to the doorstep of the Dáil and the Department of Agriculture,” said Deputy Lawless. “This is nothing more than a government land grab, going far beyond EU requirements and unfairly sacrificing small family farmers, predominately in the west, to protect intensive agriculture and big business interests.”

Deputy Lawless also warned about the wider implications of this decision, linking it to the government’s approach to the EU Nature Restoration Law.

“What we’re seeing here is a backdoor attempt to rewild land, paving the way for even more restrictions in the future,” he said. “The government is once again ignoring the needs of farmers in rural Ireland. The critical point here is that thousands of hectares of good quality grasslands will be classified as wetlands and peatlands.”

Deputy Lawless said the department is classifying rich fertile ground as peat soil. “If you’re a farmer that has a parcel of land, 51% of which is peat soil, then the whole parcel will be classified as GAEC 2.

“This has major restrictions when it comes to planning permission and farming practices.

“The issue here is that land designated GAEC 2 comes with heavy restrictions. For example, rural planning permission will be significantly harder to obtain as well as the inability to farm this land for normal food production.”

Deputy Lawless demanded urgent action from government: “The minister needs to sit down with farmers and their organisations and ensure that GAEC 2 land is accurately designated.

“The minister needs to ensure that land is categorised correctly and that farmers can self designate that land in conjunction with the Department of Agriculture.”