Specific Details
Retaining Ireland's Nitrates Derogation - Common Objectives
Intended results
To highlight that the nitrates derogation is of huge importance to the Irish agri-food sector and the wider economy. The derogation allows grassland farmers to maximise the advantages of our grass-based system while somewhat balancing the significant economic disadvantages they encounter compared to European Union (EU) counterparts.
To highlight that the uncertainty around the future of the nitrates derogation is doing little to improve water quality but is causing havoc for Irish farmers who are in the dark as to what parameters they will be farming within from 2026.
To emphasise that the following is needed as a sector -
Fair analysis of the impact of agriculture on water quality
The sector fully accepts that agriculture has an influence on water quality. However, it is not the only pressure. Failings in other sectors, such as urban wastewater, cannot be allowed jeopardise Ireland's ability to retain a nitrates derogation. It is imperative that the impact of non-agricultural sources on water quality is fully quantified, appropriately apportioned, and communicated.
Any water quality parameters agreed upon with the European Commission cannot be negatively influenced by non-agricultural water quality pressures.
No further reductions to organic N limits
The implications of a further reduction in organic N limits will have a significantly higher proportionate economic impact on the agricultural economy. Consideration should be given to combining both organic and inorganic N allowances as part of the next Nitrates Action Programme (NAP) which would reward farmers who are making increased efforts to reduce their use of inorganic nitrogen.
Priority for Government / National Effort
The recent cabinet memo confirming Government support for derogation renewal is welcomed. It is the view of the sector that the Taoiseach should lead a cabinet sub-committee chiefly tasked with coordinating the crossover roles of the relevant government departments that will be involved (Department of Agriculture, Food, and the Marine, Housing, Environment, Climate and Communications, Rural Affairs, Enterprise & Trade) in securing the nitrates derogation in the forthcoming review.
Provide farmers with long-term certainty on the derogation
The current 4-year cycle with a 2-year interim review means that farmers availing of a derogation cannot plan effectively beyond a 2-year period. However, investments that help protect water quality, such as nutrient storage, are long-term investments often financed over a 10-year timeframe. It is completely unreasonable to ask farmers to undertake long-term investments with this level of short-term policy uncertainty.
Economic, Social & Environmental Impact Assessment
A full impact assessment into the economic, social and environmental implications of a potential further reduction to organic N limits granted under the nitrates derogation is urgently required. This assessment should include an analysis of the regional effects a further reduction would have on the agricultural industry and rural economy over the short, medium and long term.
The lack of a comprehensive state-commissioned impact assessment to date is deeply frustrating. It is essential therefore that this analysis is conducted before 2025 when the next negotiations on Ireland's derogation renewal commences.
Enhanced levels of engagement with farmers
Teagasc, LAWPRO, industry and private advisory services can make a real difference in driving change. As the state agricultural science body, Teagasc have developed a clear strategy; ‘Better Farming for Water – 8 Actions for Change', This needs immediate implementation at farmer level but will only be achieved with appropriate funding. it is imperative that resources are focused on the enabling factors that support water quality improvement in this strategy.
Current programs that are focused on water quality need to be encompassed into this clear national strategy. To this end, meat and dairy processors will continue to invest in their own advisory resources and develop champion river catchments 7 P a g e within their respective areas. This is in full alignment with the ‘Farming for Water' national strategy.
The national ‘Better Farming for Water' campaign, built on a clear and focussed action plan, with specific messaging for the different agri-food sectors is an important blueprint for success. This contains key messages about the immediate action's farmers can take to improve water quality on their farms. Water quality is impacted by all farming enterprises, as well as non-farming activities and it is the responsibility of all to take appropriate actions to improve water quality.
Farm families have made huge strides supporting Bord Bia sustainability and quality assurance schemes for all sectors since 2012. The ongoing development of improvements and investment at farm level should be highlighted to credit farmers for their efforts that support good water quality and should be encouraged further.
Access to user-friendly local and National water quality data
There is a general collective understanding of the importance of protecting water quality. However, for meaningful engagement and to support collaborations which increase the ownership of water quality challenges among all stakeholders, there is a need to provide greater transparency and local relevance to water quality data.
Forming part of this broader stakeholder network and local catchment communities, farmers are keen to access water quality trends for their own local water bodies. While data is available in principle via www.catchments.ie, it is quite difficult to access, analyse and interpret. In addition, it is often unclear what the data represents in terms of water quality.
There is a need for better communication on water quality data and the delivery of actionable knowledge to farmers, specifically to support decision making, behaviour change and the spatial identification of nutrient distribution at farm scale within catchments.
A fit-for-purpose smartphone application should be developed to facilitate farmers to access and interpret water quality trends at sub-catchment, catchment and national levels. This would greatly increase the accessibility, timeliness and relevance of water quality data to farmers, and thus help better inform farm business decisions.
As part of this initiative and the ‘Better Farming for Water' programme, further awareness of individual farms Nutrient Use Score should be explored, with tailored advice for each sector e.g. dairy, drystock, and tillage.
Additional measures introduced must be given time to take effect
The 5th NAP introduced a significant number of new actions intended to reduce nutrient losses from agriculture and to improve water quality. These new measures are additional to the range of higher conditionality associated with the derogation introduced since 2018. The measures introduced under the 5th NAP are wide ranging in scope and impact.
Such impacts are currently assessed through the Agricultural Catchments Programme (ACP), and the increase in funding announced in 2024 to support these efforts is welcomed.
Measures currently implemented deserve time to be enacted and their impact on water quality assessed. Notwithstanding the importance of the ACP, the ongoing lack of spatially extensive long-term research and monitoring programmes designed specifically to assess the recovery of degraded river ecosystems to the tailored solutions currently being implemented by the agricultural sector means that trajectories and timelines of ecosystem response to measures remain uncertain.
This is compounded by the evolving array of natural and human pressures, including climate change, population growth and urbanisation, that are impacting the ecological status of both Irish and European rivers. The government and European Commission must acknowledge that the range of new actions undertaken by farmers will require for their benefits to materialise, and that the trajectories of change are uncertain.
The expectation placed on the agricultural sector towards delivering good water quality must therefore be managed accordingly informed by, and trusting in, the suite of measures currently being delivered that are informed by best practice science. The Government should compile, in advance of the next negotiations, a strong science-based document, with EPA input, similar to the Marginal Abatement Cost Curve (MACC ) for greenhouse gas emissions.
This comprehensive science-based case supported by best available evidence for the Irish context, is needed to map out the most effective water quality mitigation measures at catchment scale and provide realistic time horizons for the actions adopted by farmers.
Full Consultation
The terms of the last interim review were unachievable. There should be no agreement to any further water quality conditionality without prior consultation with the entire sector. Any additional measures that are needed to retain the current stocking rate must have realistic timeframes with achievable and quantifiable goals. There must be a realistic funding model in place to achieve these goals.
Funding and support vital to maintain a profitable and sustainable sector.
Immediate implementation of a nationwide fully funded and resourced national water quality protection programme
Water quality is the responsibility of all farmers, not just those in derogation. While the Agricultural Sustainability Support and Advisory Programme (ASSAP) is a welcome initiative, it needs additional funding and resources to have the required nationwide impact. A fully funded and resourced national water protection programme, which covers all sectors and farm types, is immediately necessary to provide long term characterisation of trends.
This programme should aim to develop targeted farm-specific measures (e.g. riparian zones, catch crops) that will have a positive impact on water quality.
A clear Government led strategy is required to support water quality initiatives. There already is strong industry and government support for the recent ‘Farming for Water' European Innovation Partnership (EIP). In conjunction with this, the recent launch of the Teagasc ‘Better Farming for Water - 8 Actions for Change' - a national awareness campaign is aimed at supporting and accelerating the adoption of actions on all farms to improve all water bodies (where agriculture is a significant pressu
In conjunction with this, the recent launch of the Teagasc ‘Better Farming for Water - 8 Actions for Change' - a national awareness campaign is aimed at supporting and accelerating the adoption of actions on all farms to improve all water bodies (where agriculture is a significant pressure) to the achievement of at least good ecological status as defined under the Water Framework Directive (WFD).
With the support of all stakeholders, it is important that the roll out of this programme is designed to maximise water quality improvements measured at national level, with farmer involvement at its core.
Funding
For a government and stakeholder strategy to be effective on the ground and in every river catchment in the state, further funding will be required to support investment. This is critical to meeting water quality goals. Funding from the NRRP and the ICNF needs to be directed towards agricultural investment in the first instance. Funding for nutrient storage needs to be available to all farmers.
It is vital that when this fund becomes available, agriculture and specifically water quality infrastructure measures are prioritised and ‘shovel ready' to build with all planning secured.
The Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund (ICNF) and the National Recover and Resilience Plan (NRRP) should be mobilised to support on-farm investments in measures to improve water quality such as nutrient storage and drive the recommendations of the AWQWG. This funding would represent just a fraction of the loss of output and export sales that would cause a generational splinter of the economy of rural Ireland.
The Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund should be mobilised to support on-farm investments in measures to improve water quality such as nutrient storage and drive the recommendations of the AWQWG. This funding would represent just a fraction of the loss of output and export sales that would cause a generational splinter of the economy of rural Ireland.
Planning
Planning laws in Ireland are weighted against developments that need to be expediated given our common law approach. A fair and rigorous planning system is a goal that can be achieved even with quicker decisions. However, a system that places the same weight on those who are not impacted by a development as those who are directly involved is not conducive to quick decisions and is leading to unnecessary delays and uncertainty for businesses.
The new Planning and Development Bill, when enacted into law must lead to expedited developments as appropriate. It is essential that the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage delivers a planning exemption on the construction of nutrient storage facilities on farms. This exemption needs to facilitate the construction of stores of significant size without excessive conditionality that could hamper the exemption's effectiveness.
Nutrient Storage
Medium-term certainty is needed to give farmers the confidence to invest in long-term assets i.e. nutrient storage, of which more is needed on farms throughout the country. The government must act to de-risk the situation now facing farmers who want to increase their storage capacity.
The increased uncertainty over the future of the nitrates derogation is a very significant blockage, while potential future changes to nutrient storage requirements that have been signposted by the government also add further doubt. Furthermore, increasing rainfall patterns, as experienced this year, is creating additional nutrient storage challenges at farm level. The industry is calling on the government to implement the following policy decisions related to nutrient storage
• Provision of a 70% TAMS grant with a separate ceiling for all farmers investing in nutrient storage facilities based on regularly updated construction costings (3-month update cycle).
• Investments in nutrient storage should be prioritised for fast-track TAMS approvals.
• Farmers should be permitted to apply for TAMS funding for nutrient storage prior to obtaining planning permission or a planning exemption thereby significantly reducing the overall lead-in time prior to commencement of construction of facilities. Planning permission/exemption can be verified at drawdown of TAMS funds.
• Access to grant aid for farmers who are not in full compliance with regulatory requirements should be considered for situations where they commit to going beyond regulatory requirements.
• Provide clarity as quickly as possible on future additional nutrient storage requirements.
• Prioritise the use of the Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund (ICNF) and the NRRP to provide the necessary funding for a national nutrient storage project in the context of climate adaptation.
The loss of the nitrates derogation would have a yet unquantified economic impact on rural Ireland, the scale of which cannot be underestimated. Accordingly, there is an onus on all stakeholders to work together to eliminate this risk. The representative organisations of the primary and processing producers of dairy and meat products in Ireland have come together to deliver on the three priority areas outlined above
All industry and farm organisation stakeholders believe that these principles are the bedrock of securing the new derogation post 2025, while enabling good water quality, so that the present family farm model remains not only viable but sustainable into the next decade and beyond.
Alan Tobin
Councillor (Meath County Council)
Anne Rabbitte
Minister of State (Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth)
Aodhan O'Riordain
MEP (European Parliament)
Barry Andrews
MEP (European Parliament)
Barry Cowen
MEP (European Parliament)
Bernard Durkan
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Billy Kelleher
MEP (European Parliament)
Brian Leddin
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Cathal Berry
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Cathal Crowe
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Charlie McConalogue
Minister (Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine)
Ciaran Mullooly
MEP (European Parliament)
Cynthia Ní Mhurchú
MEP (European Parliament)
Darragh O'Brien
Minister (Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage)
David Jones
Director of Services or Equivalent (Westmeath County Council)
Deirdre Ferris
Councillor (Kerry County Council)
Deirdre Gillane
Chief of Staff (Department of the Taoiseach)
Denis O'Donovan
Senator (Seanad)
Des Guckian
Councillor (Leitrim County Council)
Diarmuid Lynch
Special Adviser (Department of the Taoiseach)
Eileen Lynch
Councillor (Cork County Council)
Elisa O'Donovan
Councillor (Limerick City and County Council)
Erin McGreehan
Senator (Seanad)
Frank O'Flynn
Councillor (Cork County Council)
Heather Humphreys
Minister (Department of Social Protection)
Holly Cairns
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Jack O'Donnell
Special Adviser (Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine)
Jackie Cahill
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
James Lawless
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Jennifer Whitmore
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Joe Flaherty
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
John McGahon
Senator (Seanad)
John Paul O'Shea
Councillor (Cork County Council)
Johnny Mythen
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Kathleen Funchion
MEP (European Parliament)
Luke Ming Flanagan
MEP (European Parliament)
Lynn Boylan
MEP (European Parliament)
Malcolm Byrne
Senator (Seanad)
Maria Byrne
Senator (Seanad)
Maria Walsh
MEP (European Parliament)
Marian Harkin
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Martin Heydon
Minister of State (Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine)
Martin Kenny
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Mary Butler
Minister of State (Department of Health)
Mary Fitzpatrick
Senator (Seanad)
Mary Seery Kearney
Senator (Seanad)
Michael Collins
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Michael Fitzmaurice
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Michael McNamara
MEP (European Parliament)
Michael Ring
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Niamh Smyth
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Nina Carberry
MEP (European Parliament)
Noel O'Donovan
Councillor (Cork County Council)
Paddy Kavanagh
Councillor (Wexford County Council)
Patrick O'Donovan
Minister (Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science)
Paul Daly
Senator (Seanad)
Paul Gavan
Senator (Seanad)
Paul Kehoe
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Pippa Hackett
Minister of State (Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine)
Regina Doherty
MEP (European Parliament)
Robbie Staples
Councillor (Wexford County Council)
Seán Canney
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Sean Kelly
MEP (European Parliament)
Simon Coveney
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Simon Harris
Taoiseach (Department of the Taoiseach)
Tim Lombard
Senator (Seanad)
Verona Murphy
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Victor Boyhan
Senator (Seanad)
Violet Anne Wynne
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
Jack O'Donnell
Special Advisor (Department of the Taoiseach)
Brendan Gleeson
Secretary General (Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine)