SRD04: Non-productive agricultural investments for environmental purposes

This is a support scheme for forest owners to carry out non-productive investments for environmental purposes in agricultural, forestry and pastoral areas and within Natura 2000 habitats. The aid consists of a grant amounting to 70 per cent or 80 per cent of the eligible expenditure for carrying out the investment.

Eligible types of intervention:

- the creation of waterholes and/or wetlands for livestock watering in mountain pastures;

- the construction of storage tanks and/or water supply systems for the purpose of watering livestock in mountain pastures;

- construction of drinking troughs in mountain pastures or the restoration of stone drinking troughs in meadows or pastureland;

- constructed wetland systems in meadows or pastureland;

- construction of wooden fences or the conservation-based restoration of stone fences, including any hedgerows and rows of trees;

- restoration of habitats in decline, comprising the restoration of meadows or pastures or abandoned habitats;

- projects in support of Natura 2000 habitats;

- wooden fences fitted with electric fencing;

- electric fencing systems to protect livestock from large carnivores;

- road barriers to contain livestock at access points to mountain pastures;

- hives for the protection of beehives (bienenhaus with permanent electric fencing)

The level of support is as follows: 70 per cent of eligible expenditure, with an increase to 80 per cent solely for initiatives included in the annual programme of a forestry association. The minimum amount of eligible expenditure per application is €15,000.00. The maximum amount of eligible expenditure is €100,000.00 per beneficiary.

Obligations relating to investment transactions

The beneficiary of an investment operation undertakes to:

• carry out the project in accordance with the terms set out in the grant decision, subject to any agreed variations and/or exemptions;

• ensure the stability of the investment project receiving support (maintaining its intended use and carrying out maintenance) for a minimum period of 6 years from the date of the final payment to the beneficiary. Exceptions may be made in cases that have been duly assessed, justified and recognised by the competent provincial authority and which are compatible with the implementing provisions of the PSP. In the event of a transfer of ownership, the new owner may only take over the project if they sign the existing commitments;

• for applicants who are legal entities, to comply with public procurement legislation and to complete the procurement and contract award checklists provided by the Paying Agency (Provincial Agency for Agricultural Payments – APPAG), available on the website https://www.provincia.tn.it.

• provide written notification to the Forestry Service of the commencement of any works at least 15 days prior to the grant being awarded. Failure to notify the start of works within the specified timeframe may result in the initiative being deemed ineligible, where this has prevented the forestry offices from carrying out an ex-ante inspection of the site and, consequently, from conducting the technical assessment in the normal course.

The following may apply:

• Individual farmers or farming associations, including consortia established for specific purposes;

• Other public or private land managers, including those organised as associations, such as landowners and their associations, land improvement consortia, those managing land under a written agreement, and beekeepers duly registered with the Provincial Health Services Agency (APSS);

• Collective entities, including beneficiaries of cooperation schemes, which include, amongst their members, entities meeting the criteria set out above.

The application must be digitally signed by the person authorised to sign the document; otherwise, it will be deemed inadmissible.

For any assistance with accessing and registering on the portal, please contact helpdesk.srtrento@provincia.tn.it.

Eligibility criteria for applicants

On the date of submission of the grant application, each applicant:

1. is required to create, update and validate their electronic farm file annually in accordance with Presidential Decree No. 503/99, as amended and supplemented; and ii. The farm file comprises all the information declared by the farm, which is checked, verified and confirmed unambiguously via the SIGC. For applicants not covered by Article 1 of Presidential Decree No. 503/99, as amended, the farm file must be created at APPAG on the basis of the beneficiary’s personal details. Information relating to the farm file and the user manual is available on the official website of the Autonomous Province of Trento, at the following link: https://www.provincia.tn.it/Documenti-e-dati/Documenti-di-supporto/Manuale-del-fascicolo-aziendale-versione-1.0-APPAG;

2. must hold title to, or have appropriate rights of use over, the land parcels or buildings where the investment is to be carried out, in order to ensure compliance with and the duration of any restrictions resulting from the funding.

3. must not be subject to the recovery of grants awarded under the 2007–2013 and 2014–2022 Rural Development Programmes (RDPs) and subsequently revoked, without such grants having been repaid.

Failure to meet any of the above requirements will result in ineligibility for support.

All the necessary requirements and selection criteria are set out in the text of the call for applications approved by Provincial Council Resolution No. 2141 of 23 December 2024.

Applications must be submitted online via the provincial agricultural information system SRTrento at https://srt.infotn.it – which can also be accessed via the portal https://a4g.provincia.tn.it/ – within the specified deadlines.

Access to the restricted area is permitted only to registered users; each user must first register in accordance with the procedures set out in the user guide on the SRTrento website’s home page. The application must be digitally signed by the person authorised to sign the document; failure to do so will render the application inadmissible. For assistance with accessing and registering on the portal, please contact helpdesk.srtrento@provincia.tn.it

The following documentation must be attached to the application for aid:

• A technical and economic feasibility study, including a bill of quantities. The study must also be accompanied by a report justifying the selection scores entered in the application and by the investment plan, with the contents specified in the call for applications.

• ‘List of permits obtained’ form (e.g. SCIA, CIL, CILA. Building permits, authorisations, opinions, clearances) https://forestefauna.provincia.tn.it/Foreste/Attivita-forestali/Contributi-allo-sviluppo-rurale-PSP-2023-2027;

• Any permits obtained and specified in the list referred to in the previous point;

• Technical information sheet;

• Shapefile (EPSG25832) showing the location of the works (point-based for ponds, drinking troughs and other point-based works; linear for fences and rows; area-based for land restoration);

• In the case of an application submitted by entities responsible for management: a copy of the lease agreement or similar document, a declaration by the owner stating that they have not submitted and do not intend to submit an application for funding, and an agreement between the parties regarding the fulfilment of maintenance obligations.

Procedure for granting or refusing the grant

The procedure for granting or refusing the grant is divided as follows:

1. notification of the commencement of the administrative procedure and provision of the information required under Provincial Law 23/1992, as amended and supplemented;

2. verification of the documentary eligibility of all applications submitted, and drawing up of the list of beneficiaries (ranking list), taking into account the priorities and scoring criteria set out in this call for applications. At this stage, applications that do not meet the eligibility criteria for applicants or that are not accompanied by an investment plan in accordance with the requirements of the call for applications are deemed ineligible. Applications that do not achieve the minimum score specified in the call for applications are also deemed ineligible;

3. Approval, by decision of the Head of the Forestry Service, of a merit-based ranking of applications within 90 days of the deadline for submission of the applications, with the simultaneous conclusion of the administrative procedure in accordance with Provincial Law 23/1992, as amended and supplemented. The decision shall include a list of all applications submitted, divided into eligible applications with their respective scores (ranking list) and ineligible applications. Eligible applications shall be categorised as follows:

a) eligible applications potentially eligible for funding based on the allocation specified in the call for applications;

b) eligible applications on the reserve list (a list intended to make up for any reductions in expenditure identified during the technical assessment, drawn up in accordance with the order of the ranking and up to a maximum of 20 per cent of the budget allocated in the call for applications);

c) eligible applications not to be subject to technical assessment.

The ranking list shall remain valid until the date of approval of any further call for proposals concerning the SRD04 measure and, in any event, for no longer than 12 months from the date of approval of the ranking list itself.

4. notification to the applicant of the position of their application on the approved list, by means of the decision referred to in the previous point;

5. a decision granting the grant (within 90 days from the day following the date of adoption of the decision approving the merit ranking list) following the completion of the technical assessment and the drafting of the “Initial Administrative, Technical and Economic Assessment Report” by the designated technical officer, which defines the amount and type of eligible expenditure and the corresponding grant, whilst also taking into account the provisions of the call for applications regarding State Aid. The grant decision may impose conditions that must be met prior to payment. The amount awarded may not, in any case, exceed that indicated in the eligibility ranking. The technical assessment is carried out for eligible applications that are potentially eligible for funding and for eligible applications on the reserve list. If, during the period of validity of the eligibility ranking list, the Provincial Executive increases the budget for the call for applications in order to extend coverage to further eligible applications, the Forestry Service shall also carry out the technical assessment for the remaining eligible applications in accordance with the criteria set out in point 3). Decisions to award grants may be made cumulatively, including in several instalments, taking into account the approved rankings;

6. notification of the grant’s approval or rejection and any conditions to be met prior to payment;

7. submission of any requests for amendments and/or extensions.