Rural Payments and Services

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Funding under the scheme falls into two categories:

• annual payments for management options
• payments for capital costs

You will get annual payments for management options in your contract. If your application is successful these payments will be set at a standard cost in your contract as per the standard rates detailed in the management options.

Capital items are one-off activities that can be claimed for and paid once they have been satisfactorily completed. Virtually all capital items are considered on the basis of a standard cost, as shown within the rules for each individual capital item.

Any capital expenditure incurred before your application to the scheme has been submitted is not eligible.

There are two exceptions to standard costs, where actual costs may be used instead.

1. Sites of Special Scientific Interest and Natura sites (Special Protection Areas and Special Areas of Conservation)

2. other capital items where there are no standard costs available

For actual cost capital items the guidance on quotes must be followed.

1. Sites of Special Scientific Interest and Natura sites

The Scottish Government is committed to bringing designated sites (Sites of Special Scientific Interest and Natura sites) into favourable condition. In certain circumstances the standard payment rates for capital items are unlikely to cover the real costs of the works for these sites.

These circumstances include:

• remoteness of the area of land on which the work will be undertaken or awkward / rough terrain getting to site – for example island location, lack of local contractors resulting in travel and subsistence for contractors during the works, longer time to access work site, difficult to deliver materials
• awkward, rough or fragile terrain on site making it necessary to, for example, use specialist contractors, work at a slower rate, avoid disturbance to neighbouring areas, use matting to protect ground
• other conditions – for example vegetation removal from a large area of cliff which has very small area on a map

In such exceptional circumstances we will consider supporting higher, actual capital costs, where all of the following conditions apply:

• for this scheme, these activities support action on, or adjacent to, Sites of Special Scientific Interest and Natura sites (designated sites) aimed at bringing the special features of interest into favourable condition, or maintaining favourable condition of features. Your case officer will confirm this with relevant staff in Scottish Natural Heritage
• you provide an adequate demonstration of the circumstances which justify why the standard payments rates are not sufficient. For larger projects, where there are different distinguishable elements, you may have to use standard costs for those elements for which you cannot provide an appropriate justification for the use of standard costs
• you provide a detailed breakdown of the work required, the associated costs and supporting quotes in line with the guidance on quotes
• you provide a comparison with the standard payment rate for the same activity, which demonstrates that the cost of undertaking the required activity is significantly higher than this

You should discuss any such proposals with your local Scottish Natural Heritage office at an early stage before submitting your application, to ensure that what you are proposing is appropriate for the designated site features so that you can confidently proceed to getting quotes for the work

A specification for each activity is provided below:

• Ditch Blocking – Peat Dams
• Ditch Blocking – Plastic Piling Dams
• Control of Scrub / Woody Vegetation – Primary treatment – Light Vegetation
• Control of Scrub / Woody Vegetation – Primary treatment – Intermediate and Heavy Vegetation
• Control of Scrub / Woody vegetation – Removal from Site of Cut Vegetation
• Control of Scrub – Follow-up Treatment
• Matting to Prevent Damage to Bogs
• Moving or Realigning Ditches
• Open-range Deer Management
• Deer Census – Helicopter Counts
• Upland Habitat Impact Assessment for Deer Management
• Primary Treatment of Bracken – Manual
• Primary Treatment of Bracken – Mechanised or Chemical
• Manual Eradication of Rhododendron – Light, Medium or Difficult
• Mechanised Eradication of Rhododendron – Light, Medium or Difficult
• Rhododendron Control – Foliar Spray / Treatment
• Rhododendron Control – Follow-up Treatment
• Rhododendron Control – Stem Injection Eradication – Medium or Difficult
• Scare and Temporary Electric Fencing
• Stock Fence
• Enhancing or Modifying a Stock Fence
• Rabbit-proofing an Existing or New Stock or Deer Fence
• Deer Fence
• Enhancing or Modifying a Deer Fence

2. Other capital items where no standard costs are available

There are seven capital items where no standard costs are available and you will have to claim actual costs. These are:

• Coastal Embankment Breaching, Lowering or Removal
• River Embankment Breaching, Lowering or Removal
• Restoring (Protecting) River Banks
• Managing Steading Drainage and Rural Sustainable Drainage Systems
• Pesticide Handling Facilities
• Alternative Watering (electrical powered pump system)
• Alternative Watering (water trough)

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