Cabinet must deal with more farmers to achieve nitrogen targets

Johann Remix’ plan to stop five to six hundred farmers emitting too much nitrogen is not enough. This is what Financieele Dagblad says after his own investigation. Sources from The Hague told the newspaper that the Cabinet is therefore working on a plan that will affect seven times the number of farmers.

Nitrogen Minister Van der Waal expects she will have to stop 3,500 so-called peak cranes – mostly farmers – around nature reserves. This does not have to be done within a year, as suggested by Remkes. The government canceled this deadline.

Far more farmers need to stop to create space for nitrogen to build homes and roads, but also to legalize farms that have been allowed to emit ammonia for years without a permit. The so-called PAS report to the government was sufficient. The State Council put an end to this situation in 2019 and these companies have been ‘illegal’ ever since.

According to the FD Inventory, these PAS detectors together emit 5.8 million kilograms of ammonia each year. This is more than 240 times the annual ammonia emissions of Tata Steel.

Officials concluded last week that with the 700-peak loader nitrogen space, at best, just under half of all PAS reporters could be rationed. This means that at least 1,500 peak loaders will have to reduce or stop their activities.

Exactly how many PAS detectors are there is also the question. During the inventory, FD counted 3176, hundreds more than the 2,500 that Remkes had counted in his report. The vast majority, 93 percent, are farmers, and the rest are small industrial businesses.