Deadline looms for first stage of NI soil nutrient scheme

Farmers in the south-east of Northern Ireland (NI) have less than 72 hours to register for the Soil Nutrient Health Scheme (SNHS).

This is a new £45m scheme which aims to help NI farmers reduce pollution from run-off and erosion and improve their economic and environmental sustainability.

It will enable farmers to optimise crop nutrient applications, assess on-farm carbon stocks and build farm resilience.

See also: Irish farmers face ‘devastating blow’ of 25% emissions cut

But if farmers do not do register before the closing date – Wednesday 31 August –  they will fall short of the eligibility criteria which must be met to receive future agriculture support payments including the Farm Sustainability Payment, Beef Sustainability Scheme and Farming With Nature Scheme. 

These three new payments will be significant income streams for farmers and land managers going forward, replacing most of the support currently offered by the Basic Payment Scheme and Environmental Farming Scheme.

The Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) is encouraging farmers located in Zone One who have not yet registered, to do so urgently via the Daera online services portal.

Valuable information

UFU deputy president William Irvine, who farms within the Zone One area (Counties Down and Armagh), has applied for the scheme.

He said: “The wealth of information that is to be gained on soil nutrient levels for each field on our farm, as well as an estimate of the amount of carbon stored in soils, hedgerows and trees, will be invaluable to us as a farm business and will help to further improve nutrient efficiencies without creating any extra expense.

“Like all Northern Ireland farmers, I too am working to manage the high cost of fertiliser, and soil testing and analysis is more essential than ever to ensure valuable nutrients are targeted where needed to save money and help the environment.” 

The scheme, which is being delivered by the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI), is being rolled out in stages over the next four years, and farmers from other zones will be contacted to apply later.

It will see Northern Ireland setting a high global standard as the first region to establish an extensive baseline of all farms on soil nutrients, below- and above-ground carbon stocks, helping to improve water quality and the progression towards climate change targets adopting a science led, evidence-based approach.