The entire Dutch livestock emitted 471 million kilograms of nitrogen through its manure last year. That is 7 percent below the European nitrogen ceiling, Statistics Netherlands reported on Thursday. It is the fourth year in a row that the excretion of nitrogen via animal manure is below the nitrogen ceiling and the fifth year in a row that emissions have fallen.
In order to keep nitrogen production in EU countries under control, the European Commission has imposed a ceiling on the amount of nitrogen a country may emit. For animal manure, that ceiling is 504.4 million kilograms per year. The Netherlands has been below that ceiling since 2018.
Last year, total nitrogen production from animal manure amounted to 471 million kilograms, which is 18 million kilograms less than in 2020. For the first time since 2015, nitrogen emissions from cow manure also fell below the ceiling for that sector. Dairy cows and their calves excreted 273 million kilograms of nitrogen, while the ceiling is 281.8 million kilograms.
Cows did emit slightly more phosphate through their manure. This is because the grass that the cows were fed had less nitrogen and more phosphate. In total, phosphate emissions from animal manure fell by 2.7 million kilograms to 148 million. This means that emissions remain well below the set ceiling of 172.9 million kilograms.
In the pig sector, both nitrogen and phosphate emissions fell sharply. This is mainly due to the shrinking pig population. Since 2017, there has been a government scheme whereby pig farmers receive money if they stop their business. This does not yet have the desired effect, but it does have a small impact on emissions.
Nitrogen emissions also decreased in the poultry sector and in “other livestock”. In the latter category, this is entirely due to the ban on keeping mink since 1 January last year, says CBS.