News item | 11-25-2022 | 4:15 pm
With a one-off voluntary scheme for entrepreneurs who use peak loads, the cabinet wants to achieve a substantial reduction in nitrogen precipitation in the short term. This allows nature to recover, PAS detectors can be legalized and there will be room for new economic developments. By asking a broad group of peak loaders to make choices between substantial sustainability, relocation or voluntary cessation, the cabinet wants to break the nitrogen deadlock. The industry is also part of the peak loader approach. In addition, granting permits on the basis of the Nature Conservation Act must become less uncertain. This is what Minister Van der Wal for Nature and Nitrogen writes in a letter to the House of Representatives.
Following the Remkes report, the recent Porthos ruling by the Council of State again shows the need to achieve nitrogen reduction and nature restoration. PAS reporters are increasingly trapped and the business and business climate is stagnating. That is why, from an ecological, economic and social point of view, we cannot help but achieve a substantial nitrogen reduction in the short term. This presents the government and society with a major and complex task, in which all parties from the agricultural chain and other sectors such as industry make a contribution.
Minister Van der Wal: “An unavoidable approach to nitrogen reduction in the short term is necessary to restore nature. As a result, PAS detectors can be legalized with priority and more development space will become available for construction and energy transition. To this end, the government will sit down with entrepreneurs to see how nitrogen emissions can be reduced. I understand that we are putting a big question on the table with these entrepreneurs, which can lead to concerns about the future. The government will therefore do as much as possible together with the provinces to optimally help and support these entrepreneurs in this process.”
Approach with short-term effect via peak loaders
The cabinet embraces Remkes’ advice to reduce nitrogen emissions from peak loaders in a targeted and accelerated manner in the short term. Agricultural and industrial companies in the vicinity of Natura 2000 areas must reduce nitrogen emissions largely or completely in the short term. That is a difficult message for the entrepreneurs concerned, but it is the only way to affect as few companies as possible and to give PAS reporting priority priority to a nature permit.
The government and provinces attach great importance to an approach in which the human dimension is central. This is because of the major impact for these entrepreneurs. That is why one or more discussions will be held with as many of the entrepreneurs who qualify as peak loaders as possible about how nitrogen emissions can be significantly reduced. This can be done in various ways: innovate, radically switch/extensify, relocate or voluntarily stop. The cabinet has chosen to give farmers near protected nature areas the opportunity to stop using a one-off and temporary arrangement that is the best possible offer. In other words, there is no better regulation than this one. The scheme is intended for a significantly larger group than recommended by Mr. Remkes, so that the pressure on nature can be reduced more quickly and there is more room to legalize PAS reporters and allow important projects.
The government is currently further developing this so-called LBV plus scheme and aims to open the scheme from April 2023. Criteria will be published at the latest in January on rijksoverheid.nl and doenstikstof.nl so that it is clear who is eligible for this scheme. Information will also be provided about the further process. The starting point of the entire approach is and remains voluntary. In the autumn of 2023, the government will assess whether there is sufficient prospect of achieving the targets on the basis of the (anticipated) results of the approach. If not, it will be with great regret that mandatory instruments will have to be used for a select group of peak loaders.
Industry
The accelerated reduction of nitrogen deposition and sustainability is also necessary for peak loaders in industry. This approach is designed separately in order to fit in well with existing policy and the characteristics of the sector. With the approximately 50 largest peak loaders from the industry, efforts are being made to tighten permits and accelerate sustainability. The agreements for this must also be made in 2023 and lead to a significant reduction in nitrogen. The cabinet will soon announce the provisional nitrogen reduction targets for other sectors, such as industry.
Legalize PAS notifications
Legalizing PAS reporters is a priority for the government. These companies, mostly farmers and their families, have come into considerable uncertainty due to inadequate government policy. This certainly applies to PAS reporters where enforcement is imminent. The situation they are in is terrible.
Together with the provinces, the cabinet is doing everything it can to prevent these people and their companies from falling. To this end, the cabinet is making 250 million euros available for provinces to apply tailor-made solutions. Provinces can take immediate measures to this end. We also want to work with provinces, learning from each other, to see what possibilities there are in the regulations to legalize PAS reporters. Finally, if it is not possible to waive enforcement, the government will set up a claims counter to compensate for the damage suffered.
Minister Van der Wal: “I understand that this does not remove the uncertainty of the people affected, but the cabinet is making every effort not to let these people fall.”
Control of nitrogen space
In order to create more room for nitrogen in the long term, the government will strengthen and accelerate the current source measures (measures to limit nitrogen emissions at the source). The government is making an additional 400 million euros available for the Clean and Emission-free Building programme. In addition, 200 million euros will be made available for a number of specific (non-statutory) nitrogen measures in the fields of industry, construction and mobility. The space created by national source measures is carefully registered in the nitrogen registration system. The cabinet is committed to strong control over the distribution of the nitrogen space created.
Follow up advice Remkes
The Cabinet is following Mr Remkes’ advice with measures including the approach to peak loaders. The short-term approach is also necessary to offer farmers who want to continue development space in the long term in their transition to circular agriculture. But the government also wants to guarantee a long-term sustainable future for the agricultural sector: a future-proof position for agriculture as a strategically important economic sector, a leader in innovation, a producer of sustainable food, a vital countryside. At the same time, agriculture plays an important role in achieving the goals in the areas of nature, water, soil and climate. Through the National Program for Rural Areas, the provinces are working on the area-specific transition to achieve the nature, water and climate goals.
Tightening and simplifying the granting of consent
Various court decisions in recent years have shown that the granting of permits does not always hold up in court. This creates uncertainty for entrepreneurs and competent authorities. That is why the government is taking steps to keep permissions possible while at the same time making them less uncertain.
Based on court rulings and research into the use of Rav factors (emission factors), the Cabinet has concluded that Rav factors are insufficiently reliable to be able to grant new nature permits for low-emission housing systems on the basis of these. For agricultural entrepreneurs who intend to build a new low-emission housing system, this means that from now on they must carry out an appropriate assessment to determine whether they can obtain a nature permit for this. The existing guideline for an appropriate assessment will be adapted for this purpose in consultation with the provinces and the sector parties involved. This intention of the government has no consequences for nature permits that have already been granted and for which it is no longer possible to lodge an objection or appeal. There is no doubt that innovation plays and will continue to play an important role in achieving the goals, whether it concerns nature, climate or water. That is why the government, together with the provinces and the sector, is committed to simplifying the permit application for this and encouraging innovation to achieve the goals.
Finally, the government is looking at options for limiting the administrative burden for construction projects with small nitrogen depositions. For the long(er) term, the aim is to simplify the granting of permits and to offer development prospects for economic and social activities. For example, the government is investigating a lower limit by which certain projects do not require a permit. The starting point here is that any negative consequences on protected nature areas can be expressly ruled out.