Campaign for the Farmed Environment explained

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Campaign for the Farmed Environment- explained!
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What the presentation will cover

• Targets
• Campaign overview
• Governance arrangements
• Aim and audiences
• Local delivery
• Overview of approach
• Tools, activities and measures
• Reporting arrangements

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Overview The 3 themed Approach
Definition
Delivery
U P T A K E
M E A S U R E S
P A R T N E R S
A C T I V I T I E S
T A R G E T S
Farmland Birds
Resource Protection
Wider Biodiversity
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Campaign Governance
National Campaign Steering Group
Evidence and Monitoring sub-group
National Delivery sub-group
County Campaign Liaison Groups
Farmers, Growers and Farm Advisers
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Goal and Targets

• CFEs goal is to retain and exceed the
  environmental benefits of set-aside with specific
  themes on farmland birds, resource protection and
  wider biodiversity
• Specific targets and actions (such as local
  groups)
• Double area of key in-field ELS options
  (additional 40,000ha)
• Retain the current area of uncropped land (about
  179,000ha)
• Increase the area of land voluntarily managed by
  at least 30,000ha
• Help NE to achieve target of 70 of agricultural
  area in agri-environment schemes by March 2011
• Promote agronomy CPD to 1500 agronomists and
  advisors
• Seek to improve the environmental management of
  at least a third of uncropped land
• Promote voluntary measures with the greatest
  environmental benefit
• Promote Campaign participation by those outside
  agri-environment schemes by engaging 60 of them

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Our Aim and Audiences
Aim Promote voluntary management of farmland to
re-capture set-aside benefits from a relatively
small area of well located and positively managed
land. Working with

• Farmers with Environmental Stewardship (ES)
• Non ELS participants but likely to enter
• Those outside schemes
• Agronomists and farm advisers

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NFU National Campaign Activities

• Create national resource and templates for
  regional activity
• Host National Steering, Delivery and Monitoring
  groups
• Ensure agronomist training is developed and
  delivered
• Report every six months on progress
• Appoint a national Campaign Coordinator
• Web-based information hub
• Themed leaflets
• Agronomists CPD review
• National Register of Sprayer Operators (NRoSO)
  training
• National Campaign communications

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What happens in a county?

• Coordinate locally relevant campaign activities
• Identify the key deliverers and engage them in
  the Campaign
• Clarify the local Campaign priorities
• Promote local activities to explain the Campaign
• Report back on progress
• Appoint a County Coordinator and agree Activity
  and Communications Plan

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County Liaison Groups

• Issues to be addressed include
• Who leads
• Chairmanship
• Membership
• When to establish
• Demonstration farms?
• Local priorities
• Warwickshire
• Meeting of interested parties 16 September

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Tools

• Aim working at national, regional and local
  levels to promote a range of actions all farmers
  and advisers can adopt and promote
• ELS
• Re-invigorate enthusiasm and participation
• Generate thoughtful entry into best options
• Non-ELS
• 16 voluntary options (see next slide)
• Revised management rules for GAEC 12 (cross
  compliance)
• Other industry initiatives
• Voluntary Initiative on pesticides
• Professional Nutrient Management
• Catchment Sensitive Farming delivery initiative

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16 Management measures

• Block plots and strips unsown
• Regenerating grass buffer strips and uncropped
  headlands
• Blocks and strips sown
• Game strips and pollen and nectar headlands
• Stubbles and whole field options
• Rotational fallow and extended winter stubble (to
  end Feb)
• Input and management planning
• Selective use of spring cereal herbicides and
  nutrient management plans
• Alternative land use
• Short rotation coppice and mixed land use

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What are we asking farmers to do?

• Participate in the Campaign, complete a farm
  record
• Renew ELS agreements (or enter for first time)
  and choose some key in-field options
• Retain uncropped land and record all GAEC 12
  fallows
• Review voluntary management and do one thing
  outside an ELS agreement

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Monitoring and Reporting

• Six-monthly reports on progress required
• Report against outcome targets (ELS uptake,
  uncropped land, voluntary management etc)
• Also report on county groups achievements
• Land-based monitoring
• ELS participation monitored via NEs Genesis
  system (should be supplemented by farm type)
• Non-ELS participation by on-farm annual record

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Worked Example Agronomist and Farmer
participating in Farm Environment Campaign
Resource Protection
Delivery

• Uptake
• Buffer strip options
• Locate low input grassland on erodible steeper
  banks
• Slow run-off with rough seed beds, brashy cover
  or early green cover
• Review cropping choices
• e.g.
• EM2 (reverted buffer strips/fields)
• EM9/10 (autumn green cover and later crop
  establishment)
• Short rotation coppice

• Activities
• Local beacon/demo farms
• Attend local Catchment Sensitive Farm event
• Agronomist and farmer complete Soil Protection
  Review
• Refer to Resource protection risk matrix (leaflet
  and web resources)

Resource protection
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Recommendation to WMRAF

• Note the parameters of the Campaign
• Support the partnership approach
• Follow progress initially in Warwickshire but
  eventually throughout the West Midlands