Any hope of 250kg/ha ruled out for many – focus must now be on 'securing derogation from 2026'
Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue told the committee that negotiations on the derogation in 2021 were "particularly difficult", with a backdrop of increasing dairy cow numbers over the previous period, increasing use of chemical nitrogen and an increasing trend in nitrates levels in Irish waters.
Industry must prioritise "securing a renewal of our current derogation from 2026 onwards", as Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue ruled out further renegotiations with Brussels on the retention of the 250kg/ha nitrates limit for all farmers in derogation.
Mr McConalogue said that there is "the need for a clear focus on actions that will deliver improvements in water quality from now on so that Ireland has a strong hand to play in an application to renew the derogation, a process which must commence again in 2025".
Attending Friday morning's meeting of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Mr McConalogue told TDs and senators that the European Commission is "adamant and [has] given absolute certainty that there will be no amendment to our current derogation until it comes up for renegotiation in 2025".
Asked if he will go back to Brussels to fight further against the drop to 220kg of organic nitrogen per hectare from 2024, he said that the commission has been clear in its position.
However, on Friday, despite the Agriculture Minister's apparent bleak outlook, following a meeting with Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and a Fine Gael delegation on the margins of the party ‘think-in’ in Limerick, the Taoiseach has now confirmed to farmers that he has agreed to write to EU Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius.
He said he is inviting him to Ireland to meet with him, Mr McConalogue, and a delegation from the sector, or for the commissioner to meet with sector representatives in Brussels.
Mr McConalogue told the committee that negotiations on the derogation in 2021 were "particularly difficult", with a backdrop of increasing dairy cow numbers over the previous period, increasing use of chemical nitrogen, and an increasing trend in nitrates levels in Irish waters.
"The context of any negotiation is also increasingly difficult as fewer member states have a derogation and those with a derogation seeing reduced limits, given the approaching 2027 deadlines under the Water Framework Directive," he told the committee.
"Securing a renewal of the derogation at all was extraordinarily challenging. As a condition of the renewal decision, the commission insisted on a mid-term water quality review and a ‘step-down’ in the limits of the derogation in areas that would fail any one of four identified water quality criteria.
This map was submitted to the commission on June 30. It showed vast areas in the 'red' zone where a reduction to 220kg may be introduced due to poor water quality.
However, confirmation by the minister at Friday's meeting that the areas in 'white' in the EPA's map will most likely retain the 250kg level will be welcomed.
Mr McConaloue said that the commission has "identified some very limited scope, within the strict confines of the existing commission decision, to interpret elements of the mapping", which could allow some farmers in the 'red' zone to continue farming at the 250kg limit.
"The impacts of this exercise will be marginal. It would be misleading and wrong to suggest otherwise. My department has committed to concluding it by the end of this month so that derogation farmers will have the definitive information necessary to make their plans," he said.
With over 130,000 farms nationally, Mr McConalogue said there are 7,000 of those currently in derogation, and somewhere over 3,000 of those are farming between 220kg and 250kg. Those 3,000 are therefore "particularly impacted by this change and to the limit in the derogation", Mr McConalogue.
The minister said he is committed to farmers being supported through this period of a reduced derogation along with the uncertainty of the derogation's existence at all from 2026.
"My department has engaged directly with Teagasc and the private consultants this week to provide farmers with the necessary assistance to manage their way through this period," the minister said.
He added there is an "absolute need for all stakeholders to work together on the shared objective of securing a renewal of our current derogation from 2026 onwards".
"Ireland’s derogation is an exception to EU rules provided for in the Nitrates Directive. It cannot be taken for granted and it must be recognised that water quality improvement must be at the heart of Ireland’s robust defence of our derogation facility," he said.
"It will never have been more critical that Government, industry, and farmers all work together over the next two years to deliver water quality improvements and facilitate maintaining the derogation at the maximum limit possible."
Mr McConalogue did indicate to the committee that from 2026, if there were to be significant improvements in water quality before negotiations in 2025, the argument could be made for a 250kg derogation to be reinstated in areas.
