Dairy farmers have had a scathing reaction to An Taisce’s legal challenge to the nitrates derogation.

ICMSA president Pat McCormack said that “ICMSA, like most other bodies concerned with this, want to be part of the solution because farmers want to be part of the solution”.

“An Taisce’s approach seems to be predicated on the idea that commercial farming in Ireland has to be ended and removed from any future scenario, with rural communities becoming some kind of nature reserve with a few organic farms scattered throughout.

“Farmers have given An Taisce many, many, chances to contribute meaningfully to complex answers to complex questions, but we’ve never got that from them, and we have to start asking ourselves whether we are wasting our time.”

ICMSA’s vice president, Denis Drennan, told the Irish Farmers Journal that: “We need to follow science, for example the modelling done by Teagasc in Moorepark or the Catchments Programme.

"Other measures are far more effective at solving the nitrates in water problem, for example, a 10% cut in chemical N fertiliser this year will have a bigger effect than cutting stock numbers but we’re not giving these measures time.

“Dropping cow numbers will have minimal effect, yet it’s going to put farmers out of business. If stock numbers are cut by a third, that can make a farmer non-viable, going from 90 to 60 cows.”

Harold Kingston, IFA Munster regional chair said that An Taisce’s challenge will have a major impact on farmers in west Cork.

“Sixty per cent of suppliers to Carbery are in derogation and others are close and may end up in it. This is people that have land capable of growing enough grass to carry that number of cows.

"It’s the same thing as telling a tillage farmer whose land can grow four tonnes of wheat ?that he can now only grow two.

“You can’t use the land you have. It’s getting to the point where there’s no need to grow more grass because you won’t be allowed the cows to eat it. It’s the 70 cow herd on fragmented land, small family units that will be affected most. What is it going to mean for me here?”

No alternative

Ger Quain, ICMSA dairy chair says An Taisce is not giving alternatives a chance to show the changes they can make.

“The backbone of rural Ireland and the dairy industry is the family farm. I’m not 100% sure that An ?Taisce is giving farmers a chance to prove what they’re capable of.”

Stephen Arthur, IFA dairy chair, has labelled An Taisce’s actions as “disappointing”, adding that if An Taisce successfully quashes Ireland’s ?Nitrates Action Programme and the nitrates derogation, the small farmer will be hit the hardest.

“Dairy cow numbers haven’t changed in 30 years, however, if we had to deliver the same level of production as we do today with the 1990 cow, we would need 360,000 more cows to produce the same.

“That just emphasises the progress we have made with regards to technology and science.

“Science has got us into this problem and it will get us out too, we just have to let it work,” Arthur said.

He said An Taisce “seem hell bent” on focusing on what they perceive as a bad news story.

“We need a chance for the science and these new measures to deliver,” he finished.

Tipperary dairy farmer Jerry Moloney has condemned ?the challenge to the nitrates derogation.

“As a farmer in derogation, we are doing everything we’re asked to do; I have waterways fenced, buffer zones, I’m using LESS. It’s a bit of sour grapes on An Taisce’s behalf. I would like to see a lot more transparency from where An Taisce’s funding is coming from.”