Splash plate slurry reports ‘inaccurate and misleading’

No decision has been taken on a total ban of splash plates for slurry spreading, said Agriculture Minister Michael Creed last week.

Earlier, Environment Minister Denis Naughten had said reports of a future end date for splash plate slurry spreading were “grossly inaccurate and misleading”.

He said his fepartment prepared a paper to aid discussion in a public consultation earlier this year on the proposed Clean Air Strategy, and questions in the paper were posed only as an aid to discussion. The consultation document identified main issues in relation to air quality and emission sources, and recognised that spreading of slurry can, depending on the timing of the application and the weather conditions, result in nitrogen loss to the atmosphere through ammonia volatilisation.

Mr Creed said it is fully understood that low-emissions slurry technology is not suitable for all farms.

However, he revealed a big interest in low-emission equipment in the TAMS scheme and in GLAS, which he attributed to farmer demand to improve utilisation of slurry as a fertiliser.

In the TAMS category for purchase of low emission slurry spreading equipment, 539 applications have been received for trailing shoe, 394 applications for the dribble bar, and 14 applications for shallow injection.

“Overall, across all low-emissions technologies, over 1,058 applications have been received, which is above expectations. There are no splash plate systems being grant-aided.”

“In addition, more than 4,752 farmers have applied under the GLAS scheme to apply slurry using low emission equipment.”

“This is being driven by farmers themselves wanting to maximise the value of the slurry on their own farms, rather than as a regulatory requirement. Recently, the Association of Farm and Forestry Contractors of Ireland also identified their support for this technology.”