Minister Heydon highlights huge environmental benefits that show farming being unlocked as a solution to help the environment
- Published on: 21 January 2026
- Last updated on: 21 January 2026
In just three years - 6,000km riparian zones protected – equivalent distance Ireland to the Middle East
55,000 hectares of new foraging area for overwintering geese and swans – equivalent to 55,000 GAA pitches
2,300km new hedgerows planted – equivalent distance Dublin to Rome
Over 500,000 trees planted and 13,700 barn owl boxes installed
Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon TD, today highlighted the benefits accruing at national level from the voluntary participation of farmers in Ireland’s flagship agri-environment scheme over the last three years. The Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) covers approximately 1.5 million hectares within the State and is generating huge returns for the environment, biodiversity, and climate and water quality objectives.
Minister Heydon commended the farmers in ACRES for their very substantial contribution to the sustainable management of lands and the achievement of a range of environmental objectives.
“Agriculture is part of the solution to improving our environment. Under the ACRES scheme, 6,000km of watercourses have been protected under the Riparian Zone action by farmers. This equates to the distance between Ireland and the Middle East, which is a huge length of watercourses now with a buffer in place to help prevent nutrients and soil impacting water quality.”
Noting the achievements, the Minister said:
“I am pleased that, in addition to the continuing ecological benefits of ACRES, €741 million in ACRES scheme payments has issued to farmers for their environmental work. I consider that it is essential that the general public is made aware of the return the State is getting from that level of investment.”
Minister Heydon continued:
“Farmers chose from a range of over 30 actions when they applied to enter ACRES, with all of the actions designed to deliver environmental, biodiversity, climate and water quality benefits, which will accumulate over the five years they are participating in the scheme. They have, for example, planted 22,500 hectares of catch crops on their lands, the purpose of which is to reduce nutrient leaching and help prevent soil erosion. Similarly, they have agreed to manage over 55,000 hectares of land to promote the production of an undisturbed foraging area to support overwintering geese and swans. Almost 6,800 hectares have also been set aside to provide a tailored food source for farmland birds throughout the autumn and winter seasons, the equivalent of 6,800 GAA pitches. The winter bird food crop has been specifically tailored to support the dietary habits of numerous farmland species and has proven to be effective in reversing declining bird populations across Europe. Importantly, over 800 advisors have been trained to understand the environmental objectives of ACRES and communicate this through training sessions to all participating farmers.
“While over 2,300 kilometres of new hedgerows have been planted to date under ACRES (the distance equivalent of Dublin to Rome), farmers are also engaged in the rejuvenation of existing hedgerows through the laying of 306 kilometres of hedgerows and the coppicing of a further 1,082 kilometres, with all of these hedgerow actions supporting biodiversity on farms. The visual appearance of farm landscapes has also been enhanced by the planting, under ACRES, of over half a million trees. Trees provide multiple other benefits such as supporting biodiversity, providing shade and shelter of livestock and helping to reduce soil erosion.”
The Minister, noting the recognition by UNESCO of Ireland’s practice of Dry Stone Construction, added that Irish farmers are conserving this valuable part of our cultural heritage by their maintenance, under ACRES, of 10,000 kilometres of traditional freestanding dry-stone walls which also enhance the visual landscape.
Elaborating on the benefits, Minister Heydon said:
“There will be significant environmental benefits accrued over the five years of the scheme, with approximately 25% of agricultural land here entered into ACRES by just under 54,000 farmers. In addition to undertaking specific actions such as planting trees or hedgerows, or leaving buffers at watercourses, the environmental quality of over one million hectares of land has been assessed for the purposes of making results-based payments. The results-based payments under ACRES are designed to incentivise and reward farmers that deliver better environmental outcomes on their lands.”
The Minister added:
“The return from ACRES is not static, however, as farmers in the ACRES Co-operation approach may avail of funding for Non-Productive Investments and Landscape Actions. These are complementary environmental actions which they can undertake to enhance the environmental quality of their lands. I am pleased to note that over €3.6 million has been paid to 1,542 of those participants to date for the implementation of non-productive investments.”
The Minister concluded by thanking all stakeholders involved in ACRES for their efforts to date and looked forward to their continued work on ACRES to optimise the range of benefits to the State.
Notes
The European Union’s common agricultural policy (CAP) is a partnership between society and agriculture that ensures a stable supply of food, safeguards farmers’ income, protects the environment and keeps rural areas vibrant. The Member States of the European Union implement the CAP at national level in accordance with an approved CAP Strategic Plan for the period 2023-2027.
The Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) is the national agri-environment climate measure under Ireland’s CAP Strategic Plan for the period 2023-2027.
The Scheme is jointly funded by the European Union and the National Exchequer.
There are two approaches within the Scheme:
- ACRES General, available nationally (outside of the high priority geographical area as defined for the ACRES Co-operation approach below), which offers a range of measures (both prescription and result-based); and
- ACRES Co-operation, available to farmers in eight defined high priority geographical areas.
More information is available at gov.ie - Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES). There are also a range of information videos on ACRES available on the Department’s YouTube channel.