Farmers are being reminded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine that the closing date for applications under the 2019 nitrates derogation is this Sunday, March 31.
Farmers are advised to contact their agricultural advisor to determine if they should avail of this facility.
More information is available on the department’s website with applications accepted online, according to the department.
Farmers who applied for a derogation in 2018 are reminded that they must also submit fertiliser accounts by Sunday (March 31).
Farmers not already registered for agfood.ie can do so by logging onto: www.agfood.ie and clicking the ‘Register’ button.
Applications for the derogation were opened back in January by Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Michael Creed.
“Almost 7,000 intensively stocked farmers availed of the derogation in 2018,” Minister Creed noted at the time.
“These farmers engage in soil sampling, nutrient management planning and comply with an increased inspection regime in order to ensure they are farming to a high environmental standard.”
Almost 7,000 intensively stocked farmers with an agricultural area of 466,000ha availed of the derogation in 2018 with this being a marked increase in both the area and the number of farms under derogation since 2014.