Scottish Government

Chapter one Introduction

Context and background to research

1.1 The Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department ( SEERAD) oversees agricultural and environmental affairs in Scotland. It encourages the integration of economic, social and environmental concerns in support of sustainable development. E nvironmental issues and their integration in Scottish agriculture are a key part ofSEERAD's remit and their role is to ensure that policies in relation to agriculture and the environment are implemented.

1.2 The Prevention of Environmental Pollution from Agricultural Activity Code ( PEPFAA Code) offers practical guidance for farmers to help minimise the risk of causing environmental pollution through farming activities. The Scottish Agricultural Pollution Group ( SAPG) is responsible for drawing up the full Code as well as a shorter Dos and Don'ts Guide. The SAPG comprises representatives from SEERAD, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency ( SEPA), the Scottish Agricultural College ( SAC) and the National Farmers Union Scotland ( NFUS). The remit of the group is ¹:

• To prepare and proactively promote and manage the production of the PEPFAA Code
• To publish, disseminate, review and update the Code with farming industry, environmental, and policy input, as required
• To provide recommendations for an allied research and development programme which will measure the impact and inform the future development of PEPFAA

1.3 The first PEPFAA Code was issued in 1992 and the most recent edition (running to 140 pages) was published in 2005. In July 1999 research was published which revealed that "farmers felt the Code was an important and useful source of information on environmental and pollution matters". Due to the length of the Code, in 2002 the SAPG published a shorter version headed ' PEPFAA Dos and Don'ts Guide' which was subsequently revised in 2005 to reflect the 2005 version of the full PEPFAA Code.

1.4 The purpose of this 'easy reference' Guide is to provide farmers, crofters and those involved in farming activities with practical advice and methods to avoid or deal with environmental pollution and problems associated with agricultural practices. The Dos and Don'ts Guide highlights potential environmental problems associated with agricultural practices, and ways of avoiding or dealing with them.

1.5 The overall aim of the Guide is to help protect and enhance Scotland's environment. The Guide contains practical advice on how to prevent pollution, and is divided into several sections. Each section deals with a single topic:

• Diffuse Agricultural Pollution;
• Soil Protection and Sustainability;
• Collection, Storage and Application to Land of Livestock Slurries and Manures;
• Non-Agricultural Wastes and Other Imported Organic Wastes;
• Nitrogen and Phosphorus;
• Silos and Silage Effluent;
• Sheep Dip;
• Pesticides;
• Disposal of Animal Carcasses;
• Agricultural Fuel Oil;
• Waste Management and Minimisation;
• Prevention and Control of Emissions to Air.

1.6 Within each section there are 2 boxes detailing DOs and DON'Ts points. Points highlighted in RED are Mandatory for all farm businesses and breach of these could result in a fine as well as causing harm to the environment. AMBER points are GAEC-related and breaching these could reduce the Single Farm Payment. GREEN points are voluntary, although they may be related to Farm Assurance Schemes. In essence, following these points will help minimise pollution risks ².

1.7 The Guide was developed to act as an effective quick reference source in terms of preventing agricultural pollution. In order to evaluate its success and effectiveness, SEERAD commissioned George Street Research to evaluate attitudes to, and the effectiveness of, the PEPFAA Dos and Don'ts Guide (hereafter in this document referred to as 'the Guide'). Specifically, the aim of the evaluation was to inform the development of the Guide by ascertaining the views of the target audience (predominantly Scottish farmers) and users on its usefulness and effectiveness.

Research aims and objectives

1.8 This research study addresses the following objectives:

• Explore awareness, ownership and readership of the Guide;
• Examine use of the Guide in terms of frequency, specific situations etc;
• Test effectiveness of the Guide in relation to:
• • User-friendliness - ease of navigation etc;
  • Format - appropriateness, preferred format etc;
  • Content - clarity of information, accessibility of language, style etc;

• Ascertain preferences relating to regularity and means of updating information;
• Gather suggestions for improvements to the Guide;

• Ascertain the extent to which farmers have followed the good practice guidance recommended in the Guide.