The government-appointed Nitrates Expert Group has discussed “applying a limit” to the distance that land can be considered within nutrient management plans.
The group was set up to provide scientific advice to the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine on “measures to protect water quality and the environment against pollution from agricultural nutrients”.
Ireland’s current (fifth) Nitrates Action Programme (NAP) finishes in 2025. This year the Environment Protection Agency (EPA) was required to carry out an additional assessment of water quality – known as the interim review.
This review found that water quality in Ireland was not as good as it should be.
According to the minutes from one of the Nitrates Expert Group’s recent meetings, the draft fifth NAP specifies that “in terms of short-term grazing, only land within 30km is allowed to be considered in stocking rate calculation”.
In the minutes it also states:
“This measure will be proposed again as part of the interim review but instead the maximum stocking rate at farms 30km (subject to further analysis) or more from the main holding will be capped at 170kg organic manure nitrogen (N)/ha rather than at 0kg N/ha”.
The group indicated that the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) will “discuss internally how the IT system can be set up to deal with this change”.
The minutes also highlight that DAFM is to “undertake analysis” on the most “appropriate radius”.
Nitrates
Earlier this year the Environment Protection Agency (EPA) published an interim water quality review, which was required by the European Commission, “to identify waterbodies that are polluted, at risk of pollution or showing worsening trends as a result of agricultural activities”.
The EPA concluded that “over 44,000km2 of land is identified as requiring additional measures to protect water quality”.
As a result a significant number of farmers will have to reduce their rate of organic manure nitrogen from 250kg N/ha to 220kg N/ha.
DAFM yesterday (Tuesday, October 3) published a baseline map specifically setting out the areas where the nitrates derogation will be reduced.
Grazing platforms
In the latest set of published minutes from its meeting the Nitrates Expert Group also highlights that the group “recognises the need to reduce leaching from the grazing platform”.
It stated that DAFM is to “draft definition on the grazing platform and any changes required to the definition of holding”.
The minutes note that before making regulatory changes, awareness needs to be raised for both advisors and farmers on nutrient surpluses.
The expert group has suggested this could be done through developing a Nutrient Surplus Model Pilot on the Teagasc NMP online system.
“This pilot would then inform further steps for the sixth NAP,” according to the minutes.
Fertiliser
Other key issues that have been discussed by the Nitrates Expert Group to date include fencing of drains – DAFM had previously raised that fencing of drains on farms with a stocking rate over 170kg N/ha was “causing problems for DAFM inspectors”.
The group has also highlighted that it intends to recommend “at least a 10% reduction in the maximum allowable rate for chemical N fertiliser in the remainder of the fifth NAP and at least a further reduction in the sixth NAP for all farms stocked over 170kg N/ha”.
Minutes from recent meetings also show that the expert group “agrees that the tillage sector needs to do more to protect water quality”.