AHW5: Nesting plots for lapwing

The following changes have been made to this action for SFI26 (compared with the SFI24 version):

• you can now put all or part of a parcel's available area into this action – this only applies to SFI26 agreements, not existing SFI23 and SFI24 agreements
• minor updates to standard wording which appears in all area-based SFI actions

This action’s aim is that there are fallow cultivated plots within an arable crop which:

• have enough bare ground for nesting lapwings
• are present from early spring until the arable crop is harvested in the summer

The purpose of this is to provide:

• nesting sites for lapwing
• habitats for other declining farmland birds, farmland wildlife and important arable plants

What you must do

By early spring, you must establish a fallow cultivated plot within the arable crop.

You must manage the fallow cultivated plot in a way that can reasonably be expected to achieve this action’s aim. This includes managing natural regeneration if it means there is not enough bare ground for nesting birds.

You must retain the fallow cultivated plot until the arable crop is harvested in the summer and the bird nesting season is complete (usually this will be late July).

You can maintain an existing lapwing plot to get paid for this action if it:

• meets this action’s requirements
• is not already being paid for under another environmental land management scheme option, such as Countryside Stewardship option AB5 (lapwing plots)

When to do it

You must do this action each year of its 3-year duration.

If this action’s start date means it’s too late to establish the lapwing plot, you must do this within 12 months of this action’s start date.

In the final year of this action’s duration, you must do this action until the arable crop is harvested in the summer or this action’s end date, whichever is earlier.

Where you can do it

You can do this action on agricultural land located below the moorland line that’s:

• identified by you as not being at risk of soil erosion or surface runoff – you must keep evidence of this
• an eligible land type (as defined in section 5.1.1 ‘Eligible land types’ in the SFI26 scheme information)
• registered with an eligible land cover on your digital maps
• declared with a land use code which is compatible with the eligible land cover

You must not do this action on land that’s within around:

• 100 metres (m) of woods, in-field and hedgerow trees, buildings, overhead power lines, main road and public rights of way
• 200m of wind turbines

Rotational or static

This action is rotational or static. This means you can either:

• move its location for the second and third years of this action’s duration
• do it at the same location each year of this action’s duration

Evidence to keep

You must keep written evidence that land entered into this action is not at risk of soil erosion or surface runoff. You can use the soil management plan you’ve already produced for SFI24 action CSAM1 or SFI23 action SAM1 to identify this.

You must also keep evidence to show what you’ve done to complete this action, such as:

• field operations at a land parcel level and associated invoices
• photographs or other documentation

If it’s not clear that you’ve done this action in a way that could reasonably be expected to achieve its aim, we may ask for this evidence. You must supply the evidence if we ask for it.