Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)
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1328. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if the cap on the amount of nitrates used by farmers will be increased (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36346/18]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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The European Union (Good Agricultural Practice for Protection of Waters) Regulations 2017, as amended, give legal effect in Ireland to the Nitrates Directive and to our Nitrates Action Programme (NAP). Under these Regulations, annual maximum limits are provided for nitrogen and phosphorus for grassland and tillage crops. The rates are designed to meet the crop and soil requirements whilst minimising the risk of losses of nutrients to waters and air. There is no provision under the Regulations for increasing the annual maximum limits for nitrogen.

However, it is acknowledged that the drought this year has impacted significantly on grass growth, causing major difficulties for farmers in the south and east of the country in particular. Accordingly, following consultation with the Minister for Agriculture Food and the Marine, I recently announced that farmers will be allowed as an exceptional measure to spread chemical fertiliser and slurry this year for a fortnight longer than the deadline set out in the Regulations. This offers opportunities for the application of fertilisers later than normally allowed for achieving good grass growth levels through the autumn.

This, along with other important fodder-related measures recently introduced by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, will help to mitigate the fodder challenges currently facing farmers.