To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs to detail what consideration his Department has given to introducing new incentive schemes for farmers in high-risk catchment areas to support locally-appropriate nature-based solutions, such as constructed wetlands or riparian planting, to improve water quality while sustaining family farms.

Protecting and restoring our natural environment is one of my key priorities and my Department’s Sustainable Agriculture Programme (SAP) is incentivising enabling actions to support the scaling up of nature friendly farming, delivering environmental public goods including improvements in water quality, alongside sustainable food production.

Examples of the schemes within SAP that will provide support for nature-based farming include: the Farming with Nature Package, the Farm Sustainability Payment, Farming for Sustainability - Knowledge Transfer, the Sustainable Farming Investment Scheme, and the Protein Crop Scheme.

The first phase of the Farming with Nature Package, the Farming with Nature Transition Scheme, launched in June 2025 to increase the extent of habitats on agricultural land by creating new habitats, protecting watercourses, providing green infrastructure for nature corridors and increasing

carbon sequestration.

Five environmental actions were offered: planting new hedgerows, creating riparian buffer strips, farmland tree planting, retention of winter stubble and establishing multi-species winter cover crop. Supporting items available included protective fencing, gates and drinking water troughs.

Other elements of the Farming with Nature Package, focusing on support for Designated Areas, Priority Habitats and Landscapes Projects are currently being progressed.

The Sustainable Catchment Programme (SCP) currently operates in five river catchments and aims to reduce agricultural pressures on water quality in these areas. The SCP is delivered by my Department in partnership with the Rivers Trust. It invites farmers to work with Rivers Trust advisors, to ensure the right measures are implemented in the right places on each individual farm to maximise both water quality and farm benefits. Interventions funded include nature based solutions such as creating riparian buffer zones and strategic tree and hedge planting which helps combat nutrient runoff, aid carbon sequestration, and enhance biodiversity. The expansion of the SCP into other catchments is currently being scoped as an action under the Lough Neagh Action Plan.