Nitrates derogation rules 'unworkable'
Deputy president of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association Denis Drennan said for a Nitrates Derogation application to be valid, all terms and conditions of the derogation must be adhered to.
The conditions attached to Ireland's Nitrates Derogation are “unworkable”, the deputy president of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association Denis Drennan has warned.
Mr Drennan called on Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue to intervene and insist on the degree of practicality necessary to both achieve overall aims and support the family farms availing of the derogation.
The derogation allows more intensive farmers to operate at a higher stocking rate than that stipulated in the Nitrates Directive, subject to adherence to stricter rules to be implemented by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.
The Nitrates Derogation allows farmers to exceed the limit of 170kg of livestock manure nitrogen per hectare set down in the Nitrates Regulations, and to farm at a level up to a maximum of 250kg livestock manure nitrogen per hectare, subject to adherence to stricter rules.
For a Nitrates Derogation application to be valid, all terms and conditions of the derogation must be adhered to.
More than 6,000 intensively stocked farmers availed of the derogation in 2021 with a similar number anticipated to avail of the facility in 2022.
Mr Drennan said: “Under the proposals, an individual could be farming to an exceptionally high environmental standard but because of the actions of others that led to a deterioration in water qualities — a town sewage scheme, for example — that individual farmer could find themselves having to drastically reduce stock numbers from 2023."
"Likewise, if a farmer makes an error under their 2022 derogation, they will be excluded from even applying for the 2023 derogation.
"A perfect example of the kind of chaos this will bring is where a farmer tries to incorporate clover into their sward — as they are being constantly encouraged to do — and because the sward is compacted they have to plough it in and thus break the ban on ploughing a field after May 31.”
Mr Drennan said it was important the conditions attached to derogations were workable and fair and compatible with other government policies.
"These conditions are not and the onus is absolutely on Minister McConalogue to ensure that this changes and that we have conditions that are practical, workable and fit in and around with other policy and aims," he added.
