Environmental group, An Taisce has said that the Nitrates Action Programme (NAP), as proposed, does not provide the level of protection that is needed for water quality in Ireland.
An Taisce is seeking a judicial review of the NAP through the High Court.
The organisation has said that following an extended period of review, it made an application to the High Court in recent weeks to seek a judicial review of the fifth NAP announced by the government in March of this year.
High Court action on NAP
The application is rooted in what An Taisce claims is the “undisputed evidence of continuing deterioration of water quality in Ireland, where all the indicators are negative and continuing in a downward direction”.
In a statement, An Taisce said: “These figures are damning proof that previous NAPs have failed to meet their purpose which is to enable Ireland to fulfill the objectives of the Nitrates Directive.
“In that context, we could not responsibly stand by and do nothing. Our decision reflects the core remit of An Taisce to advocate for choices by, and in, Ireland that provide for a more environmentally sustainable future for the country as a whole.
“The NAP, as proposed, simply does not provide the level of protection that is needed for water quality in Ireland,” the statement read.
Nitrates Directive
According to An Taisce, the Nitrates Directive – which first came into force in 1991 – is the central legislative framework, emanating from Europe, that protects rivers and lakes from the impacts of agricultural pollution.
It requires member states to devise and implement a Nitrates Action Programme setting out specifically how water quality will be protected from agricultural impact for the next four years.
The NAP provides a basis for binding regulations over agricultural practice – known as the Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) regulations.
The effectiveness and implementation of these measures and regulations is critical given that intensive land use is the principal cause of the pollution of Irish waterways, according to An Taisce.
To date, the organisation has said that this approach has not worked, claiming agriculture negatively impacted on more than half (53%) of Irish waterbodies.
An Taisce concerns about NAP
In the period leading into the March declaration of the NAP, An Taisce said it flagged up legal weaknesses in the environmental assessments for the NAP.
“We repeatedly highlighted the scientific evidence which clearly makes the case for more ambitious and far-reaching measures, and far more rigorous assessment,” the statement from the environmental body reads.
“To address those shortcomings An Taisce made a number of recommendations in the consultation process for this NAP. In particular we advocated for a NAP that provides for catchment and site-specific measures and assessment, rather than a programme of general one-size-fits-all measures without accountability.
“These concerns were not addressed at all. Regrettably, instead of putting in place something that could help halt and reverse water pollution, the government has chosen to sideline the science and the law in framing a weak and inadequate NAP.”
Court
Based on what it said is evidence of an inevitable further deterioration in water quality, An Taisce said it had no option but to challenge this approach.
“This legal step may be misrepresented as some form of attack on the farming community,” An Taisce said.
“This application is not against people or communities. On the contrary, it is born of a longstanding commitment to ensure that the essential ingredients for flourishing rural life and agriculture – i.e. clean water and uncontaminated soil – are preserved for future generations.
“It is targeting misguided legal and regulatory structures that are actively contributing to water pollution and which thus must be challenged,” it added.
An Taisce said it cannot ignore the evidence of harm to watercourses by farming activity which it claims has a direct impact on every citizen, and on Ireland’s standing as an environmentally-aware and responsible society.
The group said that it supports sustainable farming and accepts that farmers want to work in sync with the environment.
“That can only be achieved by working with the evidence and guidance of science, and not against it,” the statement concludes.