Ireland’s nitrates derogation limits have been cut from 250kg of organic nitrogen per hectare (N/ha) to 220kg N/ha.

The move, set to see farmers in large swathes of Ireland forced to reduce stock numbers or rent more land, was confirmed following a meeting of Department of Agriculture officials at Ag House on Wednesday.

The nitrates derogation cut will be applicable from 1 January 2024, leaving farmers with less than four months to adjust their farm businesses in order to stay within the new derogation limits.

Reduction

Changes to the nitrates derogation come following a Department submission to the European Commission which included water quality performance data gathered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue had previously highlighted the precarious nature of the derogation, granted by Brussels, and had suggested that maintaining it at the 250kg level would prove challenging in the long term.

Speaking about the cut on Wednesday, he said that European Commissioner for the Environment Virginijus Sinkevicius had confirmed that there was no prospect of reopening the current Commission decision conferring a derogation from standard nitrates directive rules on Ireland.

The Minister had met with the Commissioner this week to discuss the matter.

‘Strong case’

“I made a strong case to Commissioner Sinkevicius for the retention of Ireland’s 250kg N/ha derogation until the next review, based on Ireland’s unique, grass-based agricultural system, the measures farmers had already taken to improve water quality and the need for additional time to see the results of these measures in our water quality indicators.

“The Commissioner made it clear that Ireland is one of only three remaining member states with a derogation, while stressing that there is no prospect of revisiting the current decision.

“It may be possible to make some very minor adjustments to the current mapping based on scientific parameters, but these are unlikely to affect the vast majority of derogation farmers.

"My Department will be examining this over the next few weeks and engaging with the agriculture water quality stakeholders working group in this regard,” Minister McConalogue said.