Welcome news for farmers and communities surrounding the MacGillycuddy Reeks in Co. Kerry!
The MacGillycuddy Reeks European Innovation Partnership (EIP-AGRI) project is delighted to announce the addition of eleven new farmers to the locally led agri-environmental project operating in the area. The eleven new participants are all active sheep farmers in the MacGillycuddy Reeks, with a combined area of 220 hectares being included for habitat management, with site specific actions also included.
The Reeks EIP-AGRI project is a four-year pilot locally led agri-environmental scheme to improve the sustainability and support the economic viability of farming in the MacGillycuddy Reeks. The project focusses on improving the environmental condition of the land through an incentivised payment scheme, training farmers and supporting the development of collective groups in carrying out necessary works, such as treating invasive species like rhododendron, the management bracken and scrub etc.
Currently the Project Team are developing annual work plans with the new farmers who will participate to sustainably manage their High Nature Value Farming Land. Noel Spillane, CEO of South Kerry Development Partnership, lead partner of the Reeks EIP-AGRI project has welcomed the news, stating that he is ‘delighted to see the continued interest from the farmers in the area and welcomes the expansion of the project in bringing in new participants, during this very difficult time’. This sentiment was echoed by other members of the EIP-AGRI Operational Group who oversee the project, including the MacGillycuddy Reeks farmer representatives, National Parks and Wildlife Service, Institute of Technology Tralee, Crowley Consultants-local farm advisory service, the MacGillycuddy Reeks Forum, Kerry County Council and local community group representatives.
Trisha Deane, project manager explains that the Project Team are ‘pleased to be in position to expand the project, and know that it will have a positive impact on the local economy, providing a much needed income source at this difficult time, not just for the farmers but also for the local businesses where materials will be purchased and for members of the collective groups carrying out some of the work’.
The MacGillycuddy Reeks European Innovation Partnership (EIP-AGRI) project is funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food, and the Marine (DAFM) under the Rural Development Programme (RDP) 2014-2020.
The Spring 2020 edition of the McGillycuddy Reeks EIP-AGRI Project Newsletter can be found here: https://bit.ly/2xfdJ0B This publication includes information about the project’s location, activities, supports for landowners on the Reeks and education awareness and training and their new Schools Awareness Programme.
For further information about this innovative project please contact:
Patricia Deane
MacGillycuddy Reeks EIP-AGRI Project Manager
Phone: 087 2031034.
E-mail: pdeane@skdp.net
Website: https://www.macgillycuddyreekskerry.com/
Image Credit: MacGillycuddy Reeks EIP-AGRI Project
This project is also featured on page 25 of the NRN’s EIP-AGRI Operational Group booklet published last year: https://63273-649646-raikfcquaxqncofqfm.stackpathdns.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/EIP-AGRI-Operational-Group-Booklet-2019-NRN-website.pdf
