On 4 April, the government approved the new regulations prepared by the Ministry of Agriculture (ZM) regarding the procedure for granting state and European Union (EU) support for the measure "Aquaculture providing environmental services". This will allow farms that comply with enhanced aquatic environmental requirements, as well as farms engaged in organic aquaculture, to receive financial support during the 2021-2027 planning period.

A total of 11 million euros from the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF) has been earmarked for the measure's total public funding between 2021 and 2027.

Enhanced aquatic environmental requirements, which thereby provide ecosystem services, create additional costs or loss of income for aquaculture businesses. The new regulations define the conditions for receiving support under the measure, including the enhanced aquatic environmental requirements, the amount of public support, the application procedure and the documents to be submitted.

The regulations provide that compensation can be claimed by

• aquaculture farms registered with the Food and Veterinary Service (PVD) that commit to complying with the enhanced aquatic environmental requirements specified in the regulations for five years,
• as well as farms registered with the PVD that are engaged in organic aquaculture.

The regulations "Procedure for granting state and European Union support for the measure 'Aquaculture providing environmental services'" will enter into force after their publication in the official gazette "Latvijas Vēstnesis".