Naoise Ó Cearúil (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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141. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the steps being taken by his Department to secure renewal of Ireland’s nitrates derogation; the contingency plans in place should it expire at the end of 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55000/25]

Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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The Government is committed to seeking to retain Ireland's nitrates derogation along with the dual objective of improving Irish water quality.

At the Nitrates Committee meeting in December 2024, my Department advised that in accordance with the Nitrates Directive, Ireland wished to apply for permission to continue applying in excess of 170 kg 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.

Since then Ireland has made a number of presentations to the EU Nitrates Committee, the most recent of which was made in September.

In addition, I recently met Commissioner Roswall in Brussels to discuss the importance of retaining Ireland's nitrates derogation. She has accepted my invitation to visit Ireland in November to witness our grass-based production system and the work that is on-going across the agri-food sector to reduce its impact on water quality.

Indeed, there has been significant engagement across the entire agri-food sector over the last number of years in relation to improving water quality, and it is vital to continue this engagement and momentum. Retention of the nitrates derogation is paramount to this.

Significant resources and funding have been made available for improving water quality including the Agricultural Sustainability Support and Advisory Programme or ASSAP where around 60 advisors are now providing free advice to farmers located in priority areas for action.

The €60m 'Farming for Water' European Innovation Partnership is providing significant funding to incentivise farmers to target specific additional measures above regulatory requirements in priority areas.

Teagasc's 'Better Farming for Water' Campaign is promoting eight key actions for change related to nutrient management, farmyard management and land management, and many dairy co-ops have developed sustainability schemes which set standards for environmental protection, including water quality. However, due to lag times, it must be recognised that all these actions will require time before their full impact becomes visible.

My Department will continue to engage with the European Commission and other EU Member States to ensure we get the best possible outcome for Ireland post-2025, both to retain the nitrates derogation and to improve water quality.