Environmentally sensitive areas ESAs

The dilemma was resolved by making the farm part of the environmentally sensitive area (ESA) scheme and also sowing an extra 280 ha of grassland. As his farm was now part of an ESA, the farmer was paid to reduce his stock numbers so that they then had sufficient organic grassland. This meant that although fewer lambs and beef cattle were sold per ha, the grant from the ESA scheme more than compensated for the reduction in output. 

In 1985 the first funded Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) was started in England and this was the beginning of a number of funded farm conservation schemes. Since then there have been various CAP-supported agri-environmental schemes introduced. In England about two-thirds of the farmed land is covered by one of the agri-environment schemes. The current CAP single payment scheme also has a number of environmental management requirements - crosscompliance. 

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See also in sourсe #XX -- [ ]

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