The Drenthe agriculture and nature deputy Henk Jumelet (CDA) is moderately positive about the cabinet letters presented on Friday. “The tone is positive, but the ministers still have a lot to concretise.”
Drenthe is important for nitrogen policy. The province has twelve nitrogen-sensitive protected nature areas. That is why Jumelet was on top of it on Friday when the cabinet plans became public. “It is all very much, and the connection between all measures is also important. Therefore, I can only give a preliminary response.”
Connection and collaboration
It is not the first time that he has concluded from such plans that much remains to be clarified, while the implementation of the nitrogen agreement seems to be becoming increasingly urgent. Nevertheless, Jumelet already sees some important positive measures.
“It is very important that the government now focuses much more on connecting and collaborating with the agricultural sector. That tone was far away last spring.”
He is pleased with the 226.6 million euros that the cabinet is allocating to farmers who want to switch and innovate. “Minister of Agriculture Adema says that buying up farms is not the instrument to implement nitrogen policy. There are alternatives, such as innovating or switching to other products. It is important that the minister now has a better understanding of this and also allocates money to help farmers with this.”
PAS detectors
In addition, there is the problem of PAS detectors. These are farmers who, until 2019, under the nitrogen approach program (PAS), could suffice with a notification for an expansion that was deemed too small to apply for a permit. But when the Council of State brought down PAS in May 2019, these entrepreneurs were left out in the cold. They had nowhere to go because they still had to get a permit, but the how and what is still unclear.
There was a glimmer of hope when ‘nitrogen negotiator’ Johan Remkes proposed in his much-discussed report that the cabinet should quickly buy up companies with large emissions of nitrogen, the so-called peak taxers, and should initially use the space released to help the peak taxers. However, NRC recently reported that this approach would also be legally implausible.
2023 very important
Jumelet is still moderately optimistic on this point. “Here too, the tone of the cabinet is good. In any case, the ministers are going to work to free up space for the PAS reporters. But here too, more clarity is needed.”
The year 2023 will therefore be very important, emphasizes Jumelet. “Then an agricultural agreement must be reached, in which the cabinet and the agricultural sector must agree on the future and jointly lay down plans for sustainable agriculture.”