Paula Butterly (Louth, Fine Gael)
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144. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he is satisfied that there is an understanding of the importance of the Nitrates derogation among EU counterparts; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13814/25]

Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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Ensuring that there is an understanding of the importance of the Nitrates derogation among EU counterparts is something that my Department have been proactively engaged on for some time.

In November 2023, at the Irish Government's request, the then European Commissioner for the Environment, Oceans and Fisheries visited Ireland. Furthermore, last September, senior Commission Officials within DG Environment spent three days in Ireland, at the Government's request, to learn more about the Irish situation and the on-going unprecedented collaborative engagement that is taking place across the entire agri-food sector, with the objective of improving Irish water quality.

In January of this year, the European Commissioner for Agriculture and Food visited Ireland. My department hosted the Commissioner on an Irish family farm currently availing of the derogation to highlight Ireland's unique situation and the importance of the nitrates derogation, as well as current work to improve water quality.

My Department attends the EU Nitrates Committee meetings in Brussels along with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. As part of this engagement, it highlights the uniqueness of Irish agriculture and the importance of the nitrates derogation to Ireland.

At the December 2024 Nitrates Committee meeting, my Department advised the Committee that, in accordance with Paragraph 2 (b) of Annex 3 of the Nitrates Directive, Ireland wished to apply for permission to continue applying in excess of 170kg of livestock manure nitrogen per hectare from 2026, subject to a set of conditions that will ensure that application is scientifically justified, and will continue to contribute to the achievement of the Nitrates Directive's objectives of reducing and preventing water pollution caused by agricultural nutrients. The importance of this provision for Ireland was highlighted during that intervention, along with Ireland's unique grass-based system.

My Department, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, and the broader Government, will continue to engage with other Member States, the European Parliament and the European Commission to ensure that there is a full understanding of the importance of Ireland being able to continue applying in excess of 170kg of livestock manure nitrogen per hectare, and of why Ireland's unique circumstances both justify and necessitate a continuation of that legal provision within the Nitrates Directive.