It is understood that the NI Environment Agency (NIEA), which is part of DAERA, has now received legal advice and will be completing assessments over the next few weeks on applications currently stuck in the local planning system.

Over 90 applications to build new livestock accommodation (including a number of applicants to Tier 2 of the Farm Business Improvement Scheme) are caught in planning due to concerns around ammonia emissions from livestock buildings. The NIEA insists that many designated sites and priority habitats have reached a critical level for ammonia emissions, so for a farm nearby, their planning application is left in limbo.

However, it is expected that the current impasse will soon be resolved, although sources suggest that while most planning applications will now be able to proceed, that might not be the case for a farm in very close proximity to a priority habitat (such as a raised bog).

According to new Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) president Ivor Ferguson, the delays in planning due to the ammonia issue are “farcical and totally unacceptable”.