Farmers made themselves heard this week, their fight against the major nitrogen reduction in the agricultural sector continued unabated. Meanwhile, Assen is fighting to preserve the barracks and healthcare institutions are preparing for a new fight against the corona virus.
On Monday, organic farmer Peter Oosterhof from Foxwolde tells what he thinks the cabinet’s nitrogen plans will mean for him. Although there are no concrete plans yet, the organic farmer also fears for his continued existence. According to Oosterhof, reducing emissions to 70 percent is not possible. “Yes, if I keep even fewer cows, but then I can no longer pay my bills.
On Wednesday, thousands of farmers make themselves heard. Also from Drenthe a procession of tractors is drawn to Stroe in Gelderland. At a protest meeting there they listen to speeches. The tractors do cause problems on highways, but it gets stuck on several approach roads to Stroe.
In between, on Tuesday, a rescue plan for the barracks is presented in Assen. State Secretary Van der Maat wants to close the Johan Willem Friso barracks, partly because of the high costs of making it more sustainable. Enterprising Assen and other organizations don’t like that. They want to make it a training place for making monumental buildings more sustainable, and in this way also offer the military in Assen good housing.
The coronavirus is rearing its head more and more often, the number of confirmed infections in the Netherlands is increasing and on the rise. No cause for concern for the time being in the Drenthe healthcare institutions. There are, however, concerns for the longer term. The pressure on healthcare is still high and holiday workers who can help are hard to come by.
Lessons have been learned about corona in the past two years. Healthcare institutions will work better together. And there is constant monitoring to ensure that preventive measures are taken on time. “We are now monitoring weekly: when is the moment when we have to start working with mouth caps, gloves and aprons again?” says NNCZ director Roeli Mossel.
In Emmen on Friday there was optimism about the future. The first hydrogen filling point for buses and trucks was put into operation, the first publicly accessible point in the Netherlands. “With 32 buses in Groningen and Drenthe, we now have the largest hydrogen fleet in the Netherlands and we can be proud of that. Mobility is the driver of the hydrogen economy. Fixed purchase is necessary,” says Michel van der Mark of Qbuzz.