Eamon Scanlon (Sligo-Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for accepting my proposal to have a debate on this important matter for the farming community. I am sure the Minister of State is aware of the calls for the October deadline for slurry spreading to be extended. The severe weather we have experienced in recent months has severely curtailed spreading activity. Next week's 15 October deadline needs to be extended. Farmland across the country has had little time to recover from the severe downpours during the summer. Many farms are still waterlogged and large areas of land have simply become unworkable. The current slurry spreading deadline is too tight. Farmers are severely limited in their ability to do the required spreading. Each year, we face a similar scenario and the deadline must be extended. Extending it is the only sensible thing to do.

While I appreciate that the nitrates directive is in effect, I call on the Minister to talk with his European counterparts to secure some flexibility for farmers whose lands have been severely damaged as a result of recent weather conditions. Farmers need to be reassured that the Government is doing everything in its power to extend this deadline. The weather defines all options for spreading slurry for tillage farmers in various parts of the country with crop losses and for farmers who have been unable to conserve sufficient fodder for the winter period. In some parts of the country, livestock had to be housed for the better part of the summer and opportunities to spread slurry were limited by poor ground conditions. This has left many farmers with full tanks as they face next week's deadline.

The abnormal levels of rainfall that have been experienced in most parts of Ireland in recent months have made farming exceptionally difficult. Under the nitrates directive, the spreading of chemical fertilisers, livestock manure, soiled water or organic fertilisers is prohibited when the land is waterlogged, when the land is flooded or is likely to flood, and when heavy rain is forecast within 48 hours. Farmers must check the forecasts from Met Éireann. In light of these regulations, allowances need to be made in cases where farmers have not had adequate time to spread slurry given the poor conditions. Farmers have faced increased difficulties with getting machinery onto land. The weather has also affected silage and arable crop harvesting and the emptying of slurry tanks. There have been exceptional challenges in some counties as a result of high rainfall.

I understand that farmers in Northern Ireland have been given an exemption to spread slurry past next week's deadline, as long as they can provide a reasonable explanation for such an extension.  I urge the Minister to argue for a similar exemption for farmers here. The Northern Ireland Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, Michelle McIlveen, MLA, understands all of these difficulties, including the increased costs associated with worsening land conditions and the need to house animals earlier than usual. The recent bad weather had devastated tillage farmers' crops in some counties. Fianna Fáil has called for an emergency fund to be created to cater for farmers who have seen their farmland destroyed. A fodder scheme is needed to support farmers who have lost hay, silage and straw. I urge the Minister to take a reasoned approach to this issue and to accommodate farmers who are trying to cope with dire conditions.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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I am glad to have an opportunity to outline the position in respect of the spreading periods for organic fertilisers. I thank Deputy Scanlon for raising the matter and for giving me the opportunity to bring some clarity to it.

The nitrates directive and Ireland's nitrates action programme are given legal effect by the consolidated European Communities (Good Agricultural Practice for Protection of Waters) Regulations 2014, as amended. The objective of the regulations is to protect ground and surface waters, including drinking water sources, primarily through the management of livestock manures and other fertilisers. Good agricultural practice involves the land spreading of organic fertilisers as early as practicable in the growing season to maximise the uptake of nutrients by crops and to minimise pollution risks to water courses and ground waters.

In accordance with the requirements of the nitrates directive, the regulations mandate closed periods when the application of certain types of fertilisers is prohibited. In addition, the regulations prohibit such application at any time of the year when the ground is frozen or waterlogged or when heavy rain is forecast. Specified closed periods are a key feature of the directive in all member states. The closed periods in Ireland were decided following extensive public consultation and discussions with farming bodies and the European Commission. Recent data from the agricultural catchments programme, which is operated by Teagasc, support the current closed periods in Ireland. A key message from the research is that there are disproportionately high nutrient losses to waters during the winter. The current closed period coincides with the time during which risks of incidental nutrient losses to water are at their highest.

The expert review group that was established to manage the review of the nitrates action programme in 2013 considered whether the current closed periods were sufficient. The group was of the opinion that any change in or relaxation of the closed periods would need to be supported by science. This view was also strongly expressed by the European Commission. Having considered all the information available to it, the group concluded that no scientific evidence had been provided to it to support increased flexibility in light of the risks from spreading at this time of the year. The expert review group also agreed that the shoulder periods on either side of the opening and closing dates should be considered risky times for nutrient losses to water. As a precautionary measure, the group recommended that the stipulated setback distance from surface waters should be doubled from 5 m to 10 m for two weeks before the commencement of the closed period and two weeks after the conclusion of the closed period.

On foot of negotiations with the Commission, the current third nitrates action programme clarified that soiled farmyard water, depending on the level of dry matter content, does not need to be treated as slurry. This is of benefit to dairy farmers in addressing slurry storage capacity issues. In order to prevent an elevated risk of pollution to water bodies and the danger of the contamination of drinking water supplies, the Minister has no plans at this time to consider an extension to the period for spreading slurry in 2016. However, he will keep the matter under review. I hope my reply has been of some assistance to the Deputy.

Eamon Scanlon (Sligo-Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister of State has given me a very disappointing answer. Last year, which was not quite as bad as this year, the time was extended by two weeks. It is very disappointing to hear that the same thing will not be done this year. This decision will cause severe hardship. The tanks are full. Cattle are back in sheds again. There is nowhere to put the slurry. That will cause greater pollution over the next month, two months or three months. I am extremely disappointed. I ask the Minister of State to talk to the senior Minister to see whether he might take another look at this decision, which will cause severe hardship.

I would like to know whether the Minister, Deputy Creed, will attend next week's meeting of the Council of Ministers. He needs to do so to support tillage farmers. I understand the meeting in question will take place in Brussels next Wednesday.

I would like to mention another issue in this context. The moneys which are due to farmers should be paid straightaway. People who apply for various schemes, such as the area aid scheme, the targeted agricultural modernisation scheme, the area of natural constraint scheme and the green low-carbon agri-environment scheme, sometimes do not discover there are problems with their applications until the time comes for payment. The Minister of State and I, as rural Deputies, have often been contacted by farmers who want to know why they have not been paid. It is only then that they discover there are problems. In fairness to farmers, they should be told about such issues when they make their applications and not three, four or five months later when payments are due to be made. There can be further delays of five, six or seven months in such circumstances. This is the only income that many farmers have. I appeal to the Minister of State to try to ensure the officials in the Department notify farmers when issues or problems arise. Farmers need to be informed of difficulties so that they have a chance to deal with these issues.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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As a rural Deputy who deals with farmers in the circumstances mentioned by Deputy Scanlon, I agree with what he said about the last two issues. I will certainly bring the message back to the Minister, Deputy Creed, on that matter and the other issues as well. I presume he is attending next week's European meeting, but I do not know for sure. Both of those issues fall under the remit of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, whereas the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government, Deputy Coveney, and his Department are responsible for the decision on the nitrates directive. I will bring the two other issues to the attention of the Minister, Deputy Creed, when I meet him later this evening. I agree with Deputy Scanlon that the earlier we can identify problems with applications, the better our chances of getting them solved. It is a bit too late when we go looking at these difficulties as Deputies. I will mention that. I know the Minister, Deputy Creed, like his predecessor, Deputy Coveney, is trying to improve the service in this area. There is always room to add value in that regard.

I want to make it clear that the Ministers for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government and Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputies Coveney and Creed, are in communication on the nitrates directive issue which is before the House. They are keeping an open view on the matter. At present, the advice and the science behind it does not lead to the granting of an extension.

It is something that will be kept under review at all times.