In an interview with BBC Wales this week, the Cabinet Minister Llyr Gruffydd indicated that he would move away from the ‘farming-by-calendar' approach dictated by the current closed periods within the Control of Agricultural Pollution Regulations, which were introduced by the previous Welsh Government back in 2021.
Instead, he said he would be looking to implement a technology-focussed approach to nutrient spreading.
Strong campaign
The Cabinet Minister’s comments have been welcomed by NFU Cymru; the organisation has campaigned strongly against the regulations since their introduction and took the issue to judicial review at the High Court in 2022.
The union’s long-standing position remains that the pan-Wales rules and closed periods are disproportionate and serve as a blunt, inefficient instrument burdening farmers with high costs and unintended consequences for the environment.
“A science and evidence-led approach to water quality was one of the core policy asks contained with NFU Cymru’s Growing Forward manifesto for the recent Senedd Elections."
Abi Reader, NFU Cymru President.
NFU Cymru President Abi Reader said: “The closed periods at the heart of the Welsh Government’s Control of Agricultural Pollution Regulations have put farming businesses throughout Wales under immense strain.
The farming-by-calendar approach, coupled with significant variances in weather patterns, has left farmers hamstrung and put slurry infrastructure under considerable pressure. It has been a source of great frustration for our members that they haven’t been able to apply valuable nutrients to the ground at times when the weather and soil conditions have been suitable, simply because of an arbitrary date.
Core policy asks
“A science and evidence-led approach to water quality was one of the core policy asks contained with NFU Cymru’s Growing Forward manifesto for the recent Senedd Elections.
We are, therefore, encouraged by the Cabinet Minister’s intention to make changes to the closed periods in line with Plaid Cymru’s own manifesto commitment to ‘implement a new science-led, outcomes based and risk-proportionate approach to managing nitrate vulnerability across catchments’.
Technology advances
“The technological advancements we have seen in recent years around precision application and soil monitoring, for example, equip farmers with the focussed data they need to ensure they can maximise efficient spreading of their nutrients at optimum times in a way that does not harm their local environment.
Caring for and enhancing the environment will always be a priority for Welsh farmers. We look forward to working with the Cabinet Minister and the Welsh Government on plans to support farmers to adopt these new technologies and bring these much-needed changes through to fruition.”
