Public consultation on the Draft Sixth Nitrates Action Programme opens

The Draft Sixth Nitrates Action Programme (NAP) has been published and is now open to consultation from the public.

The key focus of Ireland’s NAP is to protect water quality from the impact of agricultural nutrients as required under the Nitrates Directive. In developing the draft Sixth Programme, the Department sought advice from the Nitrates Expert Group and engaged with the agri-food sector through the Agriculture Water Quality Working Group. The draft Sixth NAP builds on the progress made through the preceding programmes, and includes a suite of new regulatory and non-regulatory measures.

Through this public consultation the broader public and any other interested parties, along with the Working Group members may take the opportunity to now provide their views as part of this public consultation.

The Nitrates Directive sets a limit of 170 kg/ha for the application of livestock manure nitrogen to land, however it allows for a higher rate to be applied, subject to certain, stricter environmental conditions, and this is commonly known as the nitrates derogation. Ireland has been granted a derogation in all five NAPs to date and has again requested a renewal of the derogation under the Sixth NAP. If successful, the derogation will be incorporated into the Programme.

The draft Programme has been published on the government website, which begins a consultation process that will run for a minimum of one month, closing on December 1st.

A consultation on the associated Strategic Environmental Assessment and Natura Impact Statement will open shortly, and will run in parallel. The consultation on the NAP will remain open for the duration of these consultations.

ENDS

Note to Editor:

The European Union (Good Agricultural Practice for Protection of Waters) Regulations, otherwise known as the GAP or Nitrates Regulations, implement the regulatory elements of the NAP and are subject to review every 4 years, in line with each NAP, with the current review to be concluded by the start of 2026. It is important for all stakeholders to contribute to this important review.

The NAP contains specific measures to protect against nutrient pollution arising from agricultural sources. These measures include measures to address nutrient balance at farm level, improved nutrient distribution on fragmented farms, increased slurry and soiled water storage requirements, expansion of DAFM’s organic nutrient movement database, and a continued focus on compliance and enforcement.

The closing date for receipt of responses is 1 December 2025, however this may be extended to align with the consultations on the Strategic Environmental Assessment and Natura Impact Statement, (the latter is being undertaken independently by the Ecological Assessment Unit of the National Parks and Wildlife Service). The relevant consultation documents are available for download from the Government website here: https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-housing-local-government-and-heritage/consultations/public-consultation-on-the-draft-sixth-nitrates-action-programme/