A FARMER told today how red tape is preventing him from lending a helping hand to a fellow farmer whose land was contaminated by flooding.
The Press reported on Tuesday how David Dean was suffering an "environmental disaster" after 200 acres of his land at Hill Top Farm, Acaster Selby, alongside the River Ouse downstream of York, had been contaminated following June's flooding.
He said laboratory tests had shown the presence of a series of heavy metals including lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium and zinc, the latter of which was believed to be above maximum levels under a European Union directive.
Mr Dean said he had had to bring his 200 cattle into his sheds and give them winter feed, and he had been warned not to let them graze in the fields for at least a year because the zinc might cause them kidney and liver problems.
Now Roger Raimes, who has a farm a few miles away at Acaster Malbis, says he would like to let Mr Dean or others affected by flooding to graze their livestock on some of his land that is not being used under the EU's "set-aside" scheme - which aims to take land out of use to curb overproduction.
He says he has 35 acres of grassland available but no animals to graze on it.
But he claims that under strict set-aside rules, he is not allowed to let anyone else's animals graze on the land.
"So my land has to remain unused and doing nothing while others have nowhere to graze their livestock and are having to buy in winter feed in the middle of summer," he said. "What a crazy system."
Julian Sturdy, the Conservative parliamentary candidate for York Outer, who first raised the issue of flooding on Mr Dean's land, said: "This is ridiculous red tape."
He said that, following the floods, original restrictions had been relaxed to allow farmers to graze their own animals on set-aside land, but this did not permit other farmers' livestock to be grazed.
He said the rules were quite strict and a breach could result in loss of subsidy.
Victims to share £2m pot
FARMERS hit by flooding - like David Dean - may now benefit from a £2 million flood recovery scheme set up by Yorkshire Forward.
The development agency has widened the parameters of its Small Business Recovery Scheme to offer up to £2,000 to eligible farmers.
The money will help recoup the costs of cleaning up after the flooding as well as replacing damaged equipment, furniture and fixtures.
Dorothy Fairburn, the Country Land and Business Association's regional director, welcomed the announcement. She said: "This is good news for farmers, who were not originally covered by the Small Business Recovery scheme when it was launched last month. I would urge any of our members who have been affected to apply for assistance, even if they were previously turned down."
However, she said it was disappointing that a maximum figure of £2,000 had been set, when other businesses in the region were being offered up to £2,500.
* Funding applications can be made by downloading a claim form from the Yorkshire Forward website - www.yorkshire-forward.com - or by requesting a form from the helpline, phone 0800 022 6201.
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