• making Wales a more attractive place to do business;• broadening and deepening the skills base;• encouraging science and innovation; and• targeting business support.

The Environment (Wales) Act 2016 improvesenvironmental regulation and puts in place a carbonbudgeting framework and interim targets to achieve atleast an 80% reduction in GHG emissions by 2050,providing clarity for green investment. It also opens upopportunities for businesses to invest in future wastemanagement and energy production from waste, and inimproving resource efficiency.

In the rural sector, the focus on green growth was well-established by 2014, with nearly £1 billion of RDP fundshaving supported new markets and businessimprovement for Wales’s land based industries and thefood supply chain. The Government was already workingto modernise agricultural systems, increasing resilienceand build new business opportunities through the RuralDevelopment Programme and the Animal Health andWelfare Framework .

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Introduction

The natural resources of land, clean air and abundantwater provide the foundation of the rural economy inWales, while the outstanding mountain and coastallandscapes and rich cultural history are the basis of athriving tourism sector. The productivity of farming,forestry and the rural workforce in Wales is relativelylow compared with its competitors, and the socialeconomy has a vital role to play in rural communitieswhere market provision is limited. Improving access tofast broadband is a priority for green growth in severalrural areas.

Policy Framework and backgroundThe green growth agenda in Wales is based upon theprinciple of sustainable development, defined in theWell-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 as“the process of improving the economic, social,environmental and cultural well-being of Wales bytaking action, in accordance with the sustainabledevelopment principle, aimed at achieving the well-being goals” . Under this new legislation every publicbody in Wales must set objectives for sustainabledevelopment, and progress will be measured against aset of 46 national indicators of social, economic andenvironmental well-being . The Government hasidentified five priorities for green growth in Wales:

• investing in high quality and sustainableinfrastructure;

Case Study – WALES (UNITED KINGDOM)Programming for the Green Economy

Wales has apopulation ofaround 3 million andan area ofapproximately 20000 km2, of which60.1% is farmlandand 9.5% is forest.

http://gov.wales/docs/dsjlg/publications/150623-guide-to-the-fg-act-en.pdf1

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Welsh Government (2016) How to measure a nation’s progress? National indicators for Wales: Technical document http://gov.wales/docs/desh/publications/160317-national-indicators-for-wales-technical-document-en.pdf

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http://gov.wales/docs/desh/publications/160321-overview-en.pdf

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The Wales RDP 2014-20

Wales is unusual in that that the policy sectors ofagriculture, forestry and the environment are nowclosely integrated in the institutional framework ofgovernment and in the way in which the RDP isdesigned and delivered.

The 2014-20 RDP focuses on ecosystem servicesprovided by agriculture and forestry, especiallywater and carbon, enhancing farm viability andcompetitiveness, and promoting innovative farmtechnologies and the sustainable management offorests. Environmental land management supportwill be targeted at specific biodiversity, watermanagement and soil erosion objectives on 700 000hectares of farmland. The productivity of farmingand forestry will be boosted, promoting greengrowth and more jobs.

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4 http://Green Growth in Wales – Investing in the Future http://gov.wales/docs/desh/publications/140623-green-growth-en.pdf

RDP investment in green rural businesses

The Sustainable Production Grant Scheme

It is an investment package aimed at helping Welshfarmers to improve both the economic and environmentalperformance of their business . It offers investmentsupport for facilities and equipment related to animalhealth and welfare, crop storage, livestock housing andhandling, renewable energy production and soil and cropmanagement.

The aim is to encourage more efficient on-farminvestment, production and resource use. Grants canrange from £16 000 (€21 880) to £400 000 (€547 000),and cover up to 40% of the total investment cost of aproject, regardless of the size of the enterprise andlocation. The scheme is open to farmers, landowners,small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and largebusinesses, voluntary organisations and co-operatives,provided they are involved in primary production ofagricultural products. It covers all farming sectors - arable,beef, dairy, goats, pigs, poultry, sheep, horticulture andapiculture.

The Timber Business Investment Scheme

aims to enhance forestry potential in Wales and add valueto forest products , in a sector where too many landowners (especially some members of the farmingcommunity) are not engaged in woodland management orcreation, and have not reacted to the current resurgencein demand for woodfuel. Investments must be related toimproving the economic value of the forest, for exampleby enabling woodland management activities, timberharvesting and/or in-forest or small-scale timberprocessing. The scheme is open to private forest owners,local authorities, SMEs, community organisations andforestry contractors. Examples of eligible activitiesinclude: investing in environmentally friendly technologyto extract timber from small and/or inaccessiblewoodlands (e.g. cable-cranes and skidders) and thedevelopment of small forest nurseries serving severalforest holdings.

The Food Business Investment Scheme

It is aimed at primary producers of agricultural productsand at businesses involved in first and/or second stageprocessing in Wales . The scheme can provide capitalinvestment and other support and is open to a wide rangeof enterprises including: sole traders, voluntary sectororganisations, private and public companies (SME andlarge enterprises), farm businesses that want to processtheir own agricultural products, and also to newbusinesses including start-ups.

More efficient use of natural resources toprovide ecosystem services

Wales is rich in natural resources and the provision ofecosystem services is recognised as an important part ofthe green economy, especially the opportunities aroundcarbon, water and biodiversity.

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Programming for the Green Economy

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Other priorities include tourism, renewable energyand improving ICT and broadband for about half amillion people in rural areas. At a local level newways of working together in partnerships and co-operatives will be encouraged alongside the LEADERapproach, and 13 000 training places will be createdto foster innovation and improve skills in agricultureforestry and the processing sector. The graphicsbelow illustrate the EU priorities, measures andbudget allocations of the Wales RDP 2014-20.

Table 1: Budget allocation per RDP Priority

Source: RDP Summaries, ENRD, 2016

Source: RDP Summaries, ENRD, 2016

Table 2: Budget allocation per RDP Measure

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http://gov.wales/topics/environmentcountryside/farmingandcountryside/cap/ruraldevelopment/wales-rural-development-programme-2014-2020/sustainable-production-grant-scheme/?lang=en

Million EUR

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6 http://gov.wales/topics/environmentcountryside/farmingandcountryside/cap/ruraldevelopment/wales-rural-development-programme-2014-2020/timber-business-investment-scheme/?lang=en

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7 http://gov.wales/topics/environmentcountryside/farmingandcountryside/cap/ruraldevelopment/wales-rural-development-programme-2014-2020/food-business-investment-scheme/?lang=en

More than half the total public expenditure on the RDP isallocated to ecosystem management (Priority 4). Theannual RDP payments for environmental landmanagement, plus the local work generated byenvironmental and woodland investment, make asignificant contribution to the rural economy of Wales,especially in areas of low-intensity livestock farming.

Glastir, the ‘one-stop-shop’ environmental scheme inWales, pays farmers, foresters and other land managersfor the provision of specific environmental goods andservices aimed at:

• combating climate change;

• improving water management; and

• maintaining and enhancing biodiversity.

Glastir is designed to deliver measurable outcomes atboth a farm and landscape level in a cost effective way,through a suite of complementary schemes includingGlastir Organics (supporting both conversion to andmaintenance of organic farming), Glastir Commonspayments are for improved management of the largeareas of common land which are important for sheepgrazing, and also widely used by walkers and climbers,home to many EU protected habitats and species, andprovide natural stores of carbon and water. GlastirWoodland provides a range of support for land managerswho wish to create new woodland and manage or restoretheir existing woodlands. Glastir Efficiency Grants supporton-farm investment in more efficient management ofenergy, water and waste (manure), and the Glastir SmallGrants Scheme complements the annual landmanagement payments by funding small on-farmenvironmental investments. Glastir Advanced is a high-level agri-environment-climate scheme, with more than90 different management options which are carefullytargeted at soil management (especially for carbon),combating diffuse pollution of water and improving theconservation status of semi-natural habitats and thespecies that use them . The image below shows howGlastir Advanced is targeted, to make sure the RDPsupport is used appropriately. Farmers and forestersconsult an online interactive map of their county toidentify the target areas for different environmentalpriorities on their land. This example is the map forCarmarthen, a county of 2 395 km2 in south Wales .

Co-operating for SustainableManagement at a local levelThe Sustainable Management Scheme

It targets environmental and social aspects of the greenrural economy at a local level, by offering grants togroups seeking to improve natural resources and thebenefits they provide, reduce greenhouse gas emissionsand/or improve business and community resilience tothe impacts of climate change . Grants range from £10000 (€73 000) to £5 000 000 (€6 837 000) and can coverup to 100% of the cost. The scale of support ranges fromsmall groups just starting up through to projects oflandscape-scale ambition that require co-ordinatedactions and inputs from many partners. The scheme isopen to a very wide diversity of applicants - SMEs andlarge businesses, education or research establishments,farmers, foresters and other land managers, communityor voluntary groups, associations of owners, communitywoodlands, trusts and local authorities.

http://gov.wales/topics/environmentcountryside/farmingandcountryside/farming/schemes/glastir/glastir-advanced/2016-glastir-score-maps/?lang=en

http://gov.wales/topics/environmentcountryside/farmingandcountryside/farming/schemes/glastir/?lang=en

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Programming for the Green Economy

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9 http://gov.wales/docs/drah/publications/151103-glastir-advanced-2017-whole-farm-code-management-options-rules-booklet2-en.pdf

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© Welsh Government

© Welsh Government

Advice, knowledge transfer, innovation andtrainingFarming Connect

http://gov.wales/topics/environmentcountryside/gwlad/?skip=1&lang=en

http://gov.wales/topics/environmentcountryside/farmingandcountryside/cap/wales-rural-network/casestudies/58173565/?lang=en

https://businesswales.gov.wales/farmingconnect/

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Programming for the Green Economy

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Key points

Wales has a new legislative framework forsustainable development and a clearcommitment to supporting Green Growth

The RDP complements other national and EUinvestment in the green economy, includingStructural Funds and research support

A suite of RDP investment measures is aimed atimproving business efficiency and skills in theprimary production and processing sectors

Environmental land management and investmentsupport is carefully targeted at clear objectivesfor green growth based on more efficient andinnovative use of Wales’ natural resources,particularly in combating climate change,managing water and protecting biodiversity

Support payments are backed up by knowledgetransfer and training services

RDP support for both the farming and forestrysectors is fully integrated in a one-stop-shopdelivery

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It delivers an integratedprogramme of knowledgetransfer, innovation andadvisory services for bothfarming and forestrybusinesses . This includes theKnowledge Exchange Hubwhich makes it easier forfarmers and foresters tocommunicate their needs toresearchers, and allows themto feedback research findingsand best practice advicethrough the Farming ConnectProgramme.

A bi-monthly publication Gwlad keeps farmers up-to-date with the latest advice, and the new ‘agri-academy’provides specialist courses for teenagers considering acareer in farming .

© Welsh Government