Slurry rules change at the county boundaries
He has claimed that exaggerated rainfall figures in the Nitrates Regulations will end up costing farmers thousands of euro.
“The farmers who will be most affected are those who have large collecting yards with slurry and dirty water flowing into the slurry tank and farmers with open slurry tanks.”
“The Department of Agriculture and Food has confirmed it has allowed for 30% additional rainfall over and above the Met Eireann 30- year average figures to take account of exceptionally wet years,” said Mr Creedon.
ICMSA believes this is excessive, because two other safeguards are built in to account for exceptionally wet years — the storage period being in excess of the closed period, and the freeboard requirement of up to 300mm.
ICMSA will be taking up the rainfall issue with Environment and Agriculture ministers Dick Roche and Mary Coughlan.
Farmers on county boundaries will be particularly interested in the outcome.
For example, slurry capacity must cater for 26 and 27 millimetres of rain per week in Limerick and Tipperary respectively, compared to 37 and 45mm in Cork and Kerry, respectively. The Nitrates Regulations rainfall criteria vary across most county borders, from 24mm in Cavan to 33mm in Wicklow; from 17mm in Dublin and 18mm in Kildare to 33mm in Wicklow; from 34 mm in Galway to 40 mm in Mayo; and from 25mm in Wexford to 31mm in Waterford.
The regulations require farmers to have facilities for storage of manure and rainwater, soiled water or other extraneous water.
Allowance must also be made for net rainfall during the specified storage period for uncovered tanks.
