
European Commission findings released in October demonstrate that water pollution risks from agricultural nitrates remain a concern. Evidence also shows that commitments by national authorities and farmers to clean-up water courses have a positive impact on drinking water, biodiversity, fisheries and tourism.
The latest Commission Report on the implementation of the Nitrates Directive reiterates the CAP’s potential for reducing water pollution risks. The report notes that an Integrated Nutrient Management Action Plan will be developed in 2022 as part of the Biodiversity and Farm to Fork strategies. This will “help the coordination of efforts and will aim at addressing nutrient pollution at source, identifying the nutrient load reductions needed to achieve the EU Green Deal targets on nutrients, stimulating the markets for safe and sustainable recovered nutrients, and increasing the sustainability of the livestock sector.”
Learn more from the Commission Report and Staff Working document accompanying the report.