Farmers had felt the pain coming. The BBB has been played out for the time being in The Hague, and it was clear that tough measures would be needed to get out of the ‘nitrogen lock’. Now hardly any houses can be built, the energy transition is stalling and farmers cannot innovate or expand. Court rulings are crystal clear: nature must be restored and nitrogen emissions must be reduced.
The pain comes. It will be difficult for farmers around protected nature reserves: according to the government, “a high emission reduction is needed there.” There will be ‘zones’ around those areas – the Veluwe and Peel being the first – in which hardly any nitrogen can be emitted. That will mean the end for many farmers who work there. They often already know this: many provinces already have such zones in the planning, and the government is giving the provinces a leading role again.
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‘We will absorb the blows’ – provinces feel left alone by the cabinet in the nitrogen crisis
Back with a vengeance: the ‘nitrogen fund’, abolished by the Schoof cabinet. 20 billion euros is available for nitrogen approach, agriculture and nature restoration. The BBB once called it a ‘farmer’s mess fund’, fearing that farmers would be forcibly bought out. But the BBB ministers are gone and the party has to take a beating. An old BBB gem, red diesel as a cheap fuel for farmers, will soon be used to pay for nature restoration, among other things. Buyout schemes will remain in place and, the intention is, to be more focused on farms that place the greatest burden on nature.
Generic reduction ceilings
The government is aiming for a reduction of 42 to 46 percent in 2035 (the last Rutte cabinet wanted this five years earlier) compared to 2019 for agriculture, but – and farmers welcome this – less will be used in calculations and more attention will be paid to the actual situation in nature and per company. There will be a standard for the number of animals per hectare, although it is still unknown how high this is. Are standards not being met? Then this cabinet would like to look at forced buyouts, which was a taboo under the Schoof cabinet.
Many agreements have not yet been finalized, according to the agreement. There will be ‘generic reduction ceilings’ (maximum emissions for all farms), but it is unclear what these will look like. ‘Covenants’ still need to be concluded regarding the use of, sometimes harmful, crop protection. Young farmers and gardeners are helped to combat an aging population. But how exactly is not yet crystal clear. We will have to wait a while for clarity, which farmers, gardeners and nature organizations have been calling for for so long.
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