Nitrates Directive

Pure, clean water is vital to human health and well-being, as well as to natural ecosystems, so safeguarding water quality is one of the cornerstones of European environmental policy. Because water sources are not restricted within national boundaries, an EUwide approach is crucial to tackling problems of pollution. The 1991 Nitrates Directive is one of the earliest pieces of EU legislation aimed at controlling pollution and improving water quality. The Nitrates Directive (91/676/EC) forms integral part of the Water Framework Directive and is one of the key instruments in the protection of waters against agricultural pressures.

Goals

The Nitrate Directive aims to protect water quality across Europe by preventing nitrates from agricultural sources polluting ground and surface waters and by promoting the use of good farming practices. Agriculture remains a major source of water-related problems. Nitrate is perhaps the most widespread groundwater contaminant and originates from natural sources, organic sources, atmospheric deposition, and inorganic fertilizer.

Nitrogen is crucial to life on earth, and the nitrogen cycle is one of the most important nutrient cycles for natural ecosystems. Plants absorb nitrogen from the soil, and animals eat the plants. When they die and decompose, the nitrogen returns to the soil, where bacteria convert it and the cycle starts again. However, farming activities can disturb the equilibrium of this cycle, for example through excessive application of fertilizers, causing on the one hand water pollution and eutrophication, due to an excess nutrient load, and on the other acidification and greenhouse gas effects, due to gaseous emissions.

Priorities

Identification of polluted or threatened waters (N)

• Surface freshwaters, in particular those used or intended for the abstraction of drinking water, containing or that could contain a concentration of more than 50 mg/l of nitrates
• Groundwater containing or that could contain more than 50 mg/l of nitrates
• Freshwater bodies, estuaries, coastal waters and marine waters, found to be eutrophic or that could become eutrophic

Designation of "vulnerable zones" (NVZ's)

• Areas of land which drain into polluted or threatened waters and which contribute to N pollution

Establishment of Code(s) of good agricultural practice, to be implemented by farmers on a voluntary basis

• Measures limiting the time when fertilizers can be applied on land, in order to allow N availability only when the crop needs nutrients
• Measures limiting the conditions for fertilizer application (steeply sloping ground, frozen or snow covered ground, near water courses)
• Requirement for a minimum storage capacity for livestock manure
• Crop rotations, soil winter cover, catch crops, in order to limit leaching during the wet seasons

Establichment Action Programmes, to be implemented by farmers within NVZs on a compulsary basis

• Measures already included in the Code(s) of good agricultural practice, which becomes mandatory in NVZs
• Other measures such as limitation of fertilizers to be applied taking into account crops needs, all N inputs and soil supply, maximum amount of animal manure to be applied (corresponding to 170 kg N organic/hectare/year)

National monitoring and reporting every 4 years

• Nitrates concentrations
• Eutrophication
• Assessment of Action Programmes impact
• Revision of NVZs and Action Programmes