Results 3,641-3,660 of 23,950 for speaker:Charlie McConalogue

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: I acknowledge that the committee met with the Commissioner.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: That was helpful in communicating our message. It is important that we, collectively, communicate our message and get it across. As the Senator will know from that engagement, the Commissioner was clear, based on the report he received from the committee, as he was with me, that there is no possibility of reopening and renegotiating an amendment to the derogation at this point in time....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: It is possible to have a limit of 250 kg N/ha in some parts of the country. The map was published at the end of-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: That is what I am focused on providing to farmers.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: It is very important that we provide that clarity. The map required and requested of us by the Commission in line with our derogation was published on 30 June. It was clear from the meeting I had with the Commissioner, and from the meeting the committee had with him, that some very minor adjustments to the map may be possible. Arising from that meeting, I have engaged with my team on...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: Yes, I am.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: In some areas, where we can back it up by data, yes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: That is correct, yes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: We are engaging with the Commission on getting that clarity. As I said in my statement, we will finalise that by the end of September.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: There will be a meeting with the water quality working group between now and then to discuss the issue and work that out. Where we have been since 30 June-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: It affects the livelihood of everybody who is in derogation, and that is the real challenge here. It should be no surprise that the Commission had that map when its representative met with the committee because the map was required by the Commission to identify the areas that would have failed the test which had been set to decide whether farmers could hold the 250 kg N/ha or would have to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: First of all, this is not something that has happened in just the past couple of weeks. We know-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: We have known since 30 June-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: The position since 30 June, when that map and those data would have been returned to the Commission, as was an obligation under our derogation, has been that those areas in red were facing 220 kg N/ha. That has been the position since the end of June. Also, we have known since the derogation was renegotiated that one of its requirements was that there would have to be an assessment of the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: As Senator Lombard will know, the information he has and had was the same as the information we had all along.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: The Senator had access to the same information we had and faced the same situation and challenges that were coming down the tracks. From the point at which the derogation was renegotiated, the start of 2022, from any reading of the media or in terms of actions and steps farmers were taking and the consequences of that in terms of land prices, that has very much been a feature throughout the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: Let me finish. Under the derogation and assessment, it was not possible to know before the end of June where we would stand on that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: Now we know there is. We have known that since our meetings with the Commissioner.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: We have said that since our meeting with the Commissioner. I would have informed the farm organisations of that as well. From 30 June, the red map was the data which the Commission required. The meeting I had with the Commissioner indicated that there could potentially be some small changes to that, but they would have to be very small and based on data. We are now engaging with the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Ireland's Water Quality and the Nitrates Derogation: Discussion (15 Sep 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: That is what we are bringing clarity to and assessing. That is what we will finalise by the end of September. I will work with the water quality working group on this detail.