Naoise Ó Muirí (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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140. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will report on the work to improve water quality, including a new dedicated committee at Government level; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25099/25]

Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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The Programme for Government clearly sets out this Government's ambition to improve water quality and put the strongest case forward to secure retention of Ireland's Nitrates Derogation.

To that end, a Cabinet Committee on Water Quality chaired by the Taoiseach and also involving the Tánaiste and several key Ministers has been established to coordinate water quality improvements across all sectors.

Last August my Department published “Water and Agriculture - a collaborative approach”. This plan pulls together a programme of significant work being done in the agriculture sector to improve water quality and includes a range of measures, the majority of which have been fully implemented such as regulatory changes to be implemented by farmers a 70% capital investment grant aid slurry importation scheme, accelerated capital allowances for manure storage investment, a €60 million investment in conjunction with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage for the 'Farming for Water' European Innovation Partnership or EIP, continuation of the ASSAP and Teagasc's multi-actor water quality advisory campaign, to name a few.

The current Nitrates Action Programme is the most robust to date and has brought significant changes for farmers. The Agricultural Sustainability Support and Advisory Programme or ASSAP, providing free advice to farmers, has developed significantly since it was established and the farming for Water EIP launched in 2024 provides funding for farmers in priority areas for implementing actions to protect and improve water quality.

We now have an unprecedented and very significant level of engagement and support right across Government, farmers and the broader agri-food industry all focused on one common objective - improving water quality. The latest EPA data published in March gives cause for optimism that this work is starting to deliver results.

The Agriculture Water Quality Working Group has met on 25 occasions to date, and meetings of this Group will continue throughout this year as measures for the next Nitrates Action Programme are developed and the Government continues to engage with the European Commission regarding Ireland's Nitrates Derogation post-2025.