Payments have commenced under the Climate Action Performance Payment (CAPP) which was announced this year for ash plantation owners impacted by ash dieback disease in their trees.
The CAPP is paid at a rate of €5,000/ha and is part of the Ash Dieback Action Plan, which includes an overall financial package of up to €237 million for forest owners impacted by ash dieback disease.
Payments will continue over the coming weeks, with payments totaling €1.83 million expected to be made to a first tranche comprising 158 forest owners.
CAPP support will continue to issue on a regular basis. Forest owners affected by ash dieback who have not yet engaged with a Reconstitution Scheme are being urged to apply now for support under the Reconstitution Ash Dieback Scheme (RADS) 2023-2027.
This is the first step in a process that will result in the payment of site clearance grants, replanting grants, and the €5,000 CAPP payment.
To apply for support, forest owners should contact a registered forester to make an application on their behalf. Once they have cleared their sites and replanted, they will become eligible for the CAPP scheme.
Commenting on the beginning of the payments, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue said: “The payments commencing this week offer recognition to ash owners who have already engaged in clearing their sites and replanting.
“I join with my colleague, Minister of State (for land used and biodiversity) Pippa Hackett, in encouraging all ash owners to apply under the Reconstitution Scheme and become eligible to apply for the CAPP scheme.”
Also commenting on the measure, Minister Pippa Hackett said: “The CAPP scheme is a very significant part of the Ash Dieback Action Plan that I launched in May of this year, and I am particularly pleased that payments have commenced in accordance with the department’s commitment to the Ash Dieback Task Force that this would happen before the end of 2024.”
The CAPP scheme opened for applications on August 20.
This payment, which is in addition to the grants paid for clearance and replanting, will be made in three installments:
- €2,500 can be applied for after the first grant on the ash reconstitution scheme;
- €1,250 can be applied for once the second grant on the reconstitution scheme is paid and premium payments on the affected plantation are complete;
- €1,250 can be applied for the following year.