THEY MAY look like ordinary wet fields on the sides of the Connemara mountains but in future they may be designated areas of “high nature value” (HNV), which could benefit both the landscape and the farmer.
The Heritage Council has embarked on a campaign that seeks recognition for maintaining the more traditional type of farming that has shaped the landscape in many parts of the country.
The European forum on nature conservation and pastoralism defines HNV as a response to “a growing recognition that the conservation of biodiversity in Europe depends on the continuation of low-intensity farming systems across large areas of countryside”.
Last week the Heritage Council launched a study on HNV in north Connemara and the Aran Islands, and its recommendations will soon go to the council’s board for ratification.
The study of aspects of farming in the area looked at how the farms were managed in a way that worked with nature and the landscape, creating the unique environment.
Cliona O’Brien, the council’s wildlife officer, said that in HNV areas, the preservation of biological diversity and nature value was linked with safeguarding the continuation of farming and long-established farming practices.
These farms, she said, had their roots in management systems which used regional breeds of livestock and drew on local skills which complemented the climate and geography of the area.
“Few artificial fertilizers and chemicals were used, and in many places small-scale cultivation was a part of livestock production systems.
“The small size of most farms and the strong cultural traditions of the farmers add to the diversity of habitats at the landscape scale, and in this area, as in others, farmers love their own place.”
She said farming largely created and still maintained wet heaths and moors, a range of grassland from mountain grazing to saltmarshes and machair, as well as a variety of marsh, wetland and riverside vegetation used as pasture.
The report recommends better communication and relationships between farmers and State bodies on agricultural and environmental policies.
There was an urgent need to identify HNV farmland on a national scale and also a need for clear definitions, especially where there were semi-natural habitats in mosaic with more intensive agriculture. Once HNV farmland had been identified, a scheme should be developed to enhance its conservation.
Such a scheme, said the recommendation, should be simple, flexible and focus on conservation results rather than string management methods. The involvement of farmers in designing such a scheme was critical.
It also recommended research on conservation issues not yet fully understood, especially sustainable grazing levels in the uplands of Connemara and changes following destocking.
It recommended proactive marketing of produce from HNV farmland to make the areas financially viable with conservation-grade branding, advertising campaigns to raise consumer awareness, the formation of producer groups and the establishment of local butchers.
A further recommendation urged investigation into diversifying farm enterprises and made recommendations supporting the use of rye for thatching on the Aran Islands.