Farmers willing to follow water pollution rules but expect payment – new study
A new study raises the concern that two in three farmers believe that they are already doing enough to protect water quality
Picture shows the wide buffer zone which separates the grazing area from the Farahy river. Photo O'Gorman Photography.
The vast majority of farmers are willing to follow rules around water pollution but they expect to receive a payment for following the measures, a recent study has found.
The study published by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) found that farmers indicated they would implement the Agricultural Sustainability Support and Advisory Programme (ASSAP) guidance as a matter of priority in 75pc of time and the “overwhelming viewpoint” among farmers is that they should receive payment for measures leading to improvement in water quality, either as payment for environmental performance or via grant schemes.
