Every lever is being pulled at the Department of Agriculture to retain Ireland’s nitrates derogation, the secretary general of the Department of Agriculture Brendan Gleeson has said.
“At its heart it will be a scientific exercise,” he told the Agricultural Science Association (ASA) conference on Thursday.
The loss of the derogation will have “real world consequences” for real people, he said.
He said that the Department is considering a “number of possible alternative approaches” to the nitrates derogation’s renewal. He did not elaborate on what these approaches are, but that his officials are talking to farm bodies and industry about them.
Gleeson said that he doesn’t think that it’s a “good idea to ventilate” everything the Department is doing in public.
Penetrate the regulations
“We’re trying to penetrate the regulations to see if we can recognise the work we have done already. The derogation officially ends on 31 December - we hope to have a decision before then,” he said.
The last time around, he said Ireland didn’t have a decision before the derogation ended either.
The Department will meet the European Commission again this month to pitch and present a case for its renewal. There will be ongoing engagement with the Commission after that, he said.
Gleeson said that the only certainty Ireland would have on the future of the derogation was if it didn’t apply for it in the first place, stating that “the only way to be certain is not to apply”.
“We want to deliver something positive for the sector. I am confident we’ve done an extraordinary amount of work with industry,” he said.
SHARING OPTIONS