Macra na Feirme has voiced concerns with new proposals table by the Department of Agriculture for farmers looking to reapply for a derogation.

The young farmers organisation has said the layering of the Habitats Directive on top of the Nitrates and Water Framework Directives has opened the door for a “potential avalanche of developments on the horizon for derogation farmers”.

Ireland’s current derogation will run out at the end of the year and the government is seeking ways to have it extended or renewed.

However, Macra president Josephine O'Neill said that Ireland already faces a crisis in generational renewal, and has questioned why the government wants to create more uncertainty.

"This comes at a time when the family farm model is already under pressure from layers of compliance and the added measures to be implemented at the family farm level, notwithstanding any additional future burdens,” she said.

Simplification

Macra has also said that these measures will be contradictory to the EU Commission’s pledges is championing simplification and freedom to farm, and is “inherently unfair” to individual farmers who could be impacted by forces outside of farming that impact water quality.

O’Neill added that the proposals will impact the viability of some of our family farms, stripping away the opportunity for succession within these family businesses and reducing their ability to provide a livelihood for the next generation.

“If these new regulations come into effect, there will be nothing left for farmers to pass on to the next generation, as this will have a direct impact on the family farm model,” she added.

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