'Drastic' nitrate pollution changes will affect farmers

摘要

Rural landowners could face annual bills amounting to millions of pounds as the true cost of the European Union's Nitrates Directive becomes clear.The National Farmers' Union claims recent changes to the directive will have a 'drastic and negative' impact on the agricultural sector.The Nitrates Directive was adopted by the EU in 1991 to reduce water pollution caused by nitrogen in agricultural fertilisers and manures that gets into rivers.Figures from the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) show about 60% of nitrate and 25% of phosphates in English waters originate from agricultural land.As part of the directive, all land that drains into waters that are affected by nitrate pollution aredesignated as nitrate vulnerable zones (NVZs). Farms on NVZs are restricted on how much manure can be used, and when they can spread manures. Farmers are also required to invest in manure and slurry storage and introduce management techniques to ensure fertilisers are more accurately directed to crops.