The water action plan 2024 which was launched this week shows the drive of farmers to deliver improvements in water quality, the Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) has said.

IFA national environment chair John Murphy said that it shows the amount of work that is ongoing nationally and at farm level within the agricultural sector to improve water quality.

“The breadth of new measures and actions that have been implemented in the last number of years by farmers and the wider industry to improve water quality is significant," Murphy said.

He said the plan clearly sets out the range of new measures that have been introduced under the fifth nitrates action plan and the CAP Strategic Plan, as well as the targeted programmes such as ASSAP or the Water EIP that work directly with farmers reduce nutrient losses and support action.

Delivery

He said that there is still a significant body of work to be done to deliver on the programme of measures set out in the plan to 2027 for agriculture, but the scale of change and the pace of which measures are being implemented to minimise farming’s impact on water quality needs to be recognised.

He concluded that farmers are fully committed to improving water quality and need the continued support of the Government to deliver on the ambition in the plan.

“Great strides are being made, but there is no room for complacency,” Murphy said.