Is it impossible or is it unwilling to do anything about bulbs and lily cultivation in places where you wouldn’t want it? And can you do something about the continuous expansion and relocation of those ornamental plants in Drenthe? The provincial government finds it impossible. Local residents and a number of parties in the Provincial Council find unwillingness. And they are not just in the opposition.
A part of Drenthe’s politics and the provincial government have been fighting for quite some time whether or not it is possible to use ‘spatial planning’ as an instrument. An investigation by the Provincial Council, by the law firm Bout, had to provide a definitive answer. And it is precisely with regard to the outcome of that research that the contradictions are great. It is indeed possible, say the proponents. The provincial government does not think so at all. And the board also doubts the quality of the research. The word ‘broddelwerk’ was just not taken literally.
The hour-long debate no longer ran entirely along the well-known political lines, in which an army of speakers – read opponents – had come forward. The divisive element in Drenthe’s politics is no longer only in opposition versus coalition. Coalition parties GroenLinks and PvdA are diametrically opposed to their partners VVD and CDA. Together with D66, SP and the Party for the Animals, they want to put a stop to the expanding floriculture with the highest use of poison in agriculture.
They think it is bad for insects, animals, nature and local residents and the water quality. Opponents of floriculture display what has already been researched in that area or what needs further research. Is agricultural poison a (co-)causative of certain types of cancer, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, birth defects, the strong decline of insects and of the poorer quality of groundwater in the future and surface water now? Proponents do not want stricter rules to be imposed if nothing is clearly established.
The opponents see a hook in what Bout was looking for: the new environmental law that may come into effect at the beginning of 2023 after years of delay. This gives the province more powers when it comes to the precautionary principle. They do not have to wait with measures if there are doubts about the harmful consequences of something. They can then introduce stricter rules in advance, according to Bout’s lawyers. But lawyers from the province that the board and part of the coalition are heading for do not see it that way at all.
And then there was also a discussion about whether you can only do something about new fields with ornamental crops or also about the existing ones. And what are new fields. According to provincial administrator Henk Brink, it does not matter if lilies are suddenly grown after years of use of the fields. It all falls under the arable land use and therefore does not need to be assessed or licensed separately. And doing something about existing crops and crops with ornamental crops in a certain field for many years already is difficult, according to Brink and his agricultural colleague Henk Jumelet.
Why are the opponents so committed to spatial planning? Because on the side of the use of agricultural poisons, the province cannot do much if the farmers adhere to the national rules. Rules about what they can use, how often, in what amount and for what purpose. And whether those products are safe enough for humans, animals and the environment when used correctly. This has all been established by the Board for the Authorization of Plant Protection Products and Biocides.
The province can then at most ask the farmers a little extra not to use strips along the fields for the bulbs and lily cultivation, so that no pesticides have to be sprayed there. But those measures are all insufficient, say local residents and political opponents who screen with the recovery of the drugs four kilometers away in gardens in villages or much further away in nature reserves.
D66, PvdA, GroenLinks, PvdD and SP are now going to discuss whether they want to have another conversation with Bout about the preparation of the report or whether they want to force the provincial government with a proposal in the near future to limit the use of ‘spatial planning’. the growing bulb and lily cultivation.
Henk Brink wants new rules on the cultivation of ornamental plants to be adopted by a new coalition after the elections of 2023. In doing so, Brink keeps to the college agreements: no new rules for agriculture on top of what The Hague has already come up with. Brink will remain pure with the lecture agreements, but it is an easy way of transferring.