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DELIVERING ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS THROUGH
LAND MANAGEMENT CONTRACTS
I Clayden
SEERAD, Pentland House, 47 Robbs Loan, Edinburgh, EH14 1TY, UK, E-mail: Ingrid.
Clayden@scotland.gsi.gov.uk
SUMMARY
From 2007 Land Management Contracts (LMCs) will be the main vehicle for
delivering rural development support to rural land managers. This novel approach is
designed to provide an integrated approach to rural development in order to achieve
the Executive’s priority objectives as set out in the Rural Development Strategy for
Scotland. The Strategy is structured around 3 proposed themes which address
priorities and challenges facing rural Scotland. Some of these have already been
identified elsewhere – for example the need to minimise diffuse pollution was
highlighted in the Custodians of Change report. The Scottish Climate Change
Programme (SCCP) is due to be published early in 2006 and the Water Framework
Directive (WFD) will place pressure on the land use sector to meet water quality
objectives.
The three themes are:
Theme 1 Underpinning performance and quality in the agriculture, food processing
and forestry sectors.
Theme 2 Enhancing rural landscapes and the natural heritage.
Theme 3 Promoting a more diverse rural economy and thriving rural communities.
The actions we propose under Theme 2 will contribute to achieving a range of
environmental benefits, from halting biodiversity loss to implementing the WFD and
contributing to UK commitments under the Kyoto climate change agreement and
associated commitments under the SCCP.
Current agri-environment schemes are designed to encourage beneficial management
of a very wide range of habitats which, in turn provides benefits for wildlife, for water
quality and for landscape.
The LMC concept allows for environmental public goods to be incentivized at
different levels.
Tier 1 – the Single Farm Payment – is subject to cross-compliance requirements,
which provide a basic environmental standard which all recipients must
meet.
Tier 2 – the LMC Menu Scheme – was introduced in 2005 and includes a range
of “light touch” agri-environment measures which are generally applicable
across the countryside, do not require a high degree of expertise, and which
all farmers and crofters can access.
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