Most intensive farmers must step up water quality protection

Over 7,000 farmers will have to condition their soils with lime, measure grass production, and include clover in new grass swards, from 2020 onwards.

These are among several recommendations by the Nitrates Expert Group which has reviewed the nitrates derogation that allows some farmers to operate with more livestock per acre than stipulated in the EU’s Nitrates Directive. The derogation is used by over 7,000 farmers on 11% of Ireland’s farmland, who manage 20% of the country’s bovine livestock.