The Rural Development Contracts (Land Managers Options) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2011

Additional land managers options

26.  After option 22, insert—

“Column 1 Option	Column 2 Activities and Eligibility Conditions							Column 3 Rate of Payment
23. Natural regeneration after cereals	(1) This is a 5 year commitment.							£406 per hectare per scheme year
	(2) An applicant is eligible for payment under this option if the applicant—
			(a)		retains stubbles from the harvest of winter cereals and leaves the area uncropped to naturally regenerate and produce rough fallow conditions until the end of August following the harvest;
			(b)		does not graze, plough or cultivate the area of stubble and any subsequent natural regeneration until after 31st August in the year following the harvest; and
			(c)		following the harvest, does not apply fertilisers, manure or pesticides except with the prior written consent of the Scottish Ministers for activities such as spot treatment of injurious weeds or control of non-native invasive weeds.
	(3) Plots may be rotated and the location of the areas managed for the purpose of this option may change from year to year but the number of hectares applied for in any year must be maintained for 5 years.
	(4) Where crops are not rotated an applicant must—
			(a)			cut at least once in every 2 years in early autumn to a minimum sward height of 10 centimetres and remove cuttings; or
			(b)			leave plots uncut if conservation benefits are expected to result.
	(5) Applicants must set out the conservation objectives in a plan which must be retained and be available for inspection.
24. Maintenance of organic farming	(1) This is a 5 year commitment.							£60 for arable and vegetable and fruit land, £50 for improved grassland and £5 for unimproved grassland/rough grazing, per hectare per scheme year.
	(2) Land is eligible if—
		(a)		the land is an organic production unit or, if the applicant is a grazings committee, the common grazings is fully organic;
		(b)		the land is at least one hectare;
		(c)		the land falls within any of the following categories:—
				(i)			arable land;
				(ii)			improved grassland;
				(iii)			rough grazings or unimproved grassland;
				(iv)			vegetable and fruit land; and
		(d)		either—
				(i)			no aid is payable under these Regulations, the 2004 Regulations or the 1994 Regulations in respect of the land; or
				(ii)			aid is payable by virtue of the 2008 Regulations, the 2004 Regulations or the 1994 Regulations in respect of the land but the entitlement to that aid has ceased before the commencement of the scheme year.
	(3) An applicant is eligible for payment under this option if the applicant—
		(a)		submits to the Scottish Ministers evidence of full organic certification for the land included in the application;
		(b)		continues to farm the land in accordance with Council Regulation 834/2007 throughout the relevant period;
		(c)		ensures that where land is to be registered with a different control body, such registration must occur before the expiry of the existing registration;
		(d)		maintains full organic certification throughout the relevant period and submits confirmation of such certification to the Scottish Ministers; and
		(e)		where land is vegetable and fruit land, produces vegetables or fruit for a minimum of 2 years during the relevant period.
	(4) In this option—
		“control body” means an independent private third party organisation carrying out inspection and certification in the field of organic production as referred to in Article 2(p) of Council Regulation 834/2007;
		“Council Regulation 834/2007” means Council Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 on organic production and labelling of organic products and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 2092/91, as amended from time to time;
		“full organic certification” means certification from a control body that the land is fully organic;
		“fully organic” means land which is farmed in accordance with Council Regulation 834/2007, which has been certified as fully organic by a control body;
		“organic production unit” means land other than a common grazing, which is fully organic; and
		“vegetable and fruit land” means land used for growing vegetables and fruit.”.