Report on implementation of the Nitrates Directive 2003

Report on implementation of the Nitrates Directive 2003 -2007 Nitrates-Committee 20 January

Report: State of play Interservice consultation finished Report currently under translation (deadline 26/1/2010) Approval by college and publication expected in February Report will be published on ENV website at the same time DG Environment – Agriculture, Forests and soil

Report: Outline 2 separated documents: Report: • textual information based on MS reports + Commission conclusions • Limited in size • All MS languages • Content: 1. Introduction 2. Evolution of pressures from agriculture 3. Water quality status and trends 4. Designation of vulnerable zones 5. Action programmes 6. Derogations 7. Forecasts on water quality 8. Infringements procedures 9. Links with other EU policies 10. Conclusion DG Environment – Agriculture, Forests and soil Staff Working Document (annexes): • Maps, figures and details to the report • No size limit imposed • Only available in EN • Content: • Chapter 1: Maps, figures and tables on fertiliser consumption, water quality, vulnerable • Chapter 2: Details on derogation decisions • Chapter 3: Examples of progress made in action programmes • Chapter 4: Details on links with other policies • Chapter 5: references

Evolution of pressures Use of mineral N: Ø EU 15: Stabilisation during 2004 -2007 (9 mio tons) Ø EU 27: Slightly increasing trend during 2004 -2007 (+ 6%) Use of mineral P: Ø EU 15: reduction of 9% Ø EU 27: reduction of 1% Livestock numbers + use of livestock manure: Ø Stabilisation of decreasing trends during 2004 -2007 for both EU 15 and EU 27 Ø Slightly decreasing trend in use of livestock manure N loads towards waters from agriculture decreasing but still around 50% of total N loads to surface waters. DG Environment – Agriculture, Forests and soil

◄EU 27 Fertilizer consumption (source EFMA 2009) ◄EU 15 DG Environment – Agriculture, Forests and soil

DG Environment – Agriculture, Forests and soil

Water quality Groundwater: Ø Improving slowly § 66% of sites stable or decreasing [NO 3 -] § 34% of sites increase in [NO 3 -] Ø 15% of sites show values > 50 mg/L for [NO 3 -] Surface water § 70% of sites stable or decreasing [NO 3 -] § 30% of sites increase in [NO 3 -] Ø 3% of sites show values > 50 mg/L DG Environment – Agriculture, Forests and soil

DG Environment – Agriculture, Forests and soil

DG Environment – Agriculture, Forests and soil

NVZ designation About 40 % of EU territory is designated Ø Including territory of MS that apply an action programme on the whole territory Ø 10 Member States apply a whole territory approach Ø Water quality data show that further designation is required in several EU regions DG Environment – Agriculture, Forests and soil

NVZ designation (situation May 2009) Whole territory: • Austria • Denmark • Finland • Germany • Ireland • Lithuania • Luxembourg • Malta • Netherlands • Slovenia DG Environment – Agriculture, Forests and soil

DG Environment – Agriculture, Forests and soil

Action Programmes Ø Quality improved substantially in EU 15 since last reporting period, however often driven by infringement Ø AP’s established in all New Member States; further improvement required in many of them, particularly on storage construction, balanced fertilisation and closed periods. Ø Sustained extension services for farmers and efficient control programmes essential for effective implementation Details and examples are included in the Staff working documents, including a list of derogation decisions. Important trend: increased attention for manure processing in several MS Ø Techniques range from simple separation to high advanced techniques such as composting of solids and biological treatment and membrane filtration Ø Several cooperative initiatives established across EU. DG Environment – Agriculture, Forests and soil

Links with other EU policies Nitrates Directive has close links with other EU policies in the field of water, air, climate change and agriculture Nitrates Directive forms integral part of the WFD and the new Groundwater Directive confirms the limit of 50 mg/l, introduced in the Ni. D as trigger value, as effective quality standard. Implementation of action programmes contributes to important benefits for air and remission of green house gas emissions Cross compliance and Agri-env measures in RDP’s are important tools to integrate environmental concerns into agriculture, including sustainable nutrient management DG Environment – Agriculture, Forests and soil

Acknowledgment + next reporting Thanks to all MS for delivering of data and reports and good cooperation Thanks to the consultant Alterra for processing tasks Next reporting for 2008 -2011 Ø Further integration into the WISE system Ø Reporting guidelines will be updated, any suggestion is welcome DG Environment – Agriculture, Forests and soil