MP calls for 'rigid rules' on slurry spreading to be revised but DEARA says ' no scientific, agronomic or economic evidence' for a change

Slurry spreading rules in NI are governed by the Nutrient Action Programme (NAP) Regulations to protect water quality and prevent nutrient runoff – which has been blamed for pollution in local rivers and Lough Neagh.

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Currently it is banned for slurry and organic manures to be spread from October 15 to January 31 inclusive. Farmyard Manure is also banned from being spread from October 31 to January 31. There is also a ban on slurry being spread on waterlogged, flooded, snow-covered, or frozen soils.

Describing the rules as ‘rigid’ the former DUP MP called on the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) Minister to revise them saying the ‘current policy should not come at the expense of common sense’.

In correspondence sent to the Minister in early October, the MP said that after prolonged wet weather and poor ground conditions farmers were prevented from making full use of the remaining days before the statutory closed period came into force on October 15.

Mrs Lockhart said that Minister Muir, in an email, ‘refused to support any change to the existing arrangements, stating that NI had not experienced weather conditions severe enough to significantly restrict agricultural productivity’.

The MP said: “He also pointed to the absence of any provision within the Nutrients Action Programme (NAP) to vary the statutory dates administratively, while highlighting the exceptional circumstances provisions which can be considered on an individual basis.”

Ms Lockhart said: “I am disappointed, although not surprised, by the Minister’s response. It demonstrates a lack of understanding of the practical challenges facing farmers and agricultural contractors, not only within my constituency, but right across NI.

“I spoke to farmers and contractors at this week’s inaugural Slurry Live event at the Eikon Centre near Lisburn.

“Everyone is frustrated by DAERA’s calendar farming regulations. We’ve had two weeks of dry weather and ideal slurry spreading conditions, but because of the rules everything is at a standstill between now and the February 1, 2027 when the ban expires.

“The weather and ground conditions in the run-up to 15th October were far from favourable for slurry spreading. Farmers were faced with persistent rainfall and waterlogged farmland, making it difficult, and in many cases impossible, to utilise the final days of the permitted spreading season.

“Since then, with the exclusion of the recent storms, NI has subsequently experienced a relatively dry and settled period, providing more favourable conditions for farmers to get slurry out onto their land.

“Farmers understand the importance of protecting water quality. No responsible farmer wants to spread slurry in conditions where it could run off into waterways. They realise it is more beneficial for the land to spread slurry during periods of settled dry weather.

“There is a fundamental difference between having sensible environmental safeguards and enforcing rigid calendar dates regardless of the actual weather and ground conditions.”

The Upper Bann MP said: “The Minister is under the impression that NI didn’t experience weather severe enough to significantly restrict agricultural productivity.

“I would suggest he spends some time listening to farmers who have been battling the elements and trying to manage their businesses in exceptionally challenging conditions.

“With planning permission heavily curtailed, many farmers can’t increase slurry storage capacity, and therefore, need to empty their slurry tanks before the slurry ban and the winter housing period begins.

“It is not good enough to point to exceptional circumstances which require individual farmers to demonstrate that compliance was impossible and that no reasonable alternative existed. This is not a practical, or sensible solution, for a recurring annual problem.

“I am not suggesting that environmental protections should be ignored or that slurry should be spread during unfavourable conditions. Quite the opposite. We should be encouraging farmers to spread when ground conditions are right, rather than relying exclusively on fixed calendar dates.

“The Minister must engage meaningfully with the farming industry on a revision of the rules.”

The MP concluded: “Farmers should be supported in doing the right thing for the environment, not placed in an impossible position by regulations that fail to reflect the reality on the ground.

“Common sense should prevail. We need regulations that work for farmers and the environment, rather than simply enforcing unworkable dates.”

A spokesperson for DEARA said: “Given the continuing pressures on water quality, particularly in Lough Neagh and other waterways, it remains essential that every reasonable measure is taken to minimise nutrient losses from agricultural land and all other sources.”

He said: "Slurry is a valuable fertiliser, and nutrients lost to waterways are also nutrients lost to the farm business. If slurry is applied when grass cannot effectively use those nutrients, its fertiliser value can be lost and replacement nutrients may subsequently be required. Scientific evidence from the Agri Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI) shows that risk of nutrient losses to waterways from slurry spreading during the autumn and winter months cannot be judged simply by whether land is dry or trafficable. Shorter daylight hours and lower temperatures limit grass growth and nutrient uptake during this period.

"So, while there may be some dry spells in autumn and winter and soils may be trafficable on occasions, there is minimal nutrient uptake. Therefore, any nutrients in slurry applied during this period would remain in the soil and are highly vulnerable to run off to waterways during any subsequent wet weather until grass and crop growth picks up in the spring.

"Nutrients lost to waterways are nutrients wasted. This incurs both economic costs to farmers, who need to replace lost nutrients with chemical fertilisers or additional slurry, and environmental costs through water pollution.”

He said there is no scientific, agronomic or economic evidence supporting a change to the closed period for slurry spreading.

Livestock farms are legally required to have at least 22 weeks’ slurry storage capacity, compared with an approximately 16-week closed period.