Farmer petition demands rethink on Welsh 10% tree cover plan

Mid-Wales farmer Alex Higgs has launched a new petition on the Welsh government’s website, demanding a rethink of the plan to make all farms have at least 10% tree cover.

The proposal is one of the coalition government’s key conditions for receiving future taxpayer support under the new Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS), which is scheduled to take effect in 2025.

See also: Farmer dismay as Welsh government sticks to 10% tree plan

The Welsh government has a target to plant 86m trees on 43,000ha of land by 2030 as part of its climate goals, and rural affairs minister Lesley Griffiths insists that 10% tree cover will be one of the “universal actions”  required under SFS.

Mrs Higgs, who runs beef and sheep at Llanidloes in Powys and has a mixed farming operation on the Gower, says the unions and farmers have told the Welsh government repeatedly that such a target will be impossible to meet.

“But they do not seem to be listening,” she said. “I have therefore created this petition to allow farmers to have a say.

“I need to get as many people as possible – farmers, families, friends, agricultural related businesses – to sign the petition by the end of the year.

“It is important that as many farmers as possible can access the new scheme, as it is a replacement for the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS). The tree element should be an ‘optional action’ instead.”

Mrs Higgs is petitioning for the government to rethink its Sustainable Farming Scheme © Alex Higgs

Environmental advocate

Mrs Higgs says she has always been a big advocate of the environment and biodiversity, but explains that many farmers cannot, for various reasons, plant hectares of trees.

She therefore predicts a low uptake of the SFS if the 10% tree cover requirement persists, which will be economically detrimental to the Welsh rural economy.

She is also concerned by the impact it would have on food production, if productive farmland is taken out of cultivation.

“This will affect all industries that serve the agricultural sector,” she said. “Many farmers who presently receive BPS but cannot receive SFS will struggle to survive.”

The petition can be found on the Welsh Parliament Petitions website.