AN EU COMMISSIONER does not want to “decimate” farming in Ireland, according to Irish MEPs responding to unhappiness relating to limits on nitrates that aim to improve water quality.

Fine Gael MEPs suggested that efforts being made by Irish farmers to improve water quality need to be recognised, and will be the focus of a mooted visit by the EU Commissioner for the Environment.

Ireland is one of three EU member states that has been granted a derogation to enable some farmers to work to a higher nitrate limit than is applied in the rest of the bloc.

However, that allowance will be reduced from January next year from the allowance of 250kg of organic nitrogen per hectare (N/ha) to 220kg N/ha.

The limit for EU states that do not have a derogation is 170kg N/ha.

Farmers have raised concerns about the cut, arguing that it will affect their ability to make a living and that it will not have a major impact on improving water quality.

Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue has come under pressure over the decision, with farmers accusing him of not pushing harder to get a better derogation limit for Ireland.

At the National Ploughing Championships this week, one farmer told the minister the 220kg limit would not make a major difference to water quality, and said that, if the 170kg limit is imposed in 2026, “it’s all over”.

McConalogue said he has been “crystal clear” that it is the European Commission’s decision and not that of the Irish government.

He said that the Commissioner has said the negotiations for the limits coming into force in January cannot be reopened.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and McConalogue have invited the EU Commissioner for the Environment Virginijus Sinkevicius, a former economy minister in Lithuania, to Ireland to discuss the issue.

Asked about the issue at the National Ploughing Championship, Irish MEP Sean Kelly said that the Commissioner understands Ireland’s position and “wants to ensure that we do the right thing in terms in the environment”.

“But he doesn’t want to put farmers out of productivity,” he said.

“So I think when he comes, there will be an opportunity for the government, and from the farming organisations to speak to him, to tell him what’s happening on the ground, and then maybe take a decision which may not be as bad as it sounds now, which will combine both: improve water quality, help farmers reach the emissions targets without actually having to cut productivity.”

When asked whether that deal would be for January or for negotiations for the 2026 limits, he said: “That’s possibly the position at the moment, but when he comes we will see”.

“I know from speaking to him, he’s very practical and he wouldn’t want to be seen as the person who decimated the Irish agriculture industry without giving it a 100% chance to prove what it can do and I think when you are given that chance, then the cuts which have been mentioned now, won’t be necessary, certainly not all of them anyway.”

Fine Gael MEP Colm Markey added: “The reality is that the Commissioner has indicated he wishes to come to Ireland.

“He also is interested in seeing what’s happening in Ireland, he recognises that there are actions being taken outside, let’s say, the parameters of the contractors are having significant impact on improving water quality, and he wants to find out about them.

“As regards the current situation, there may be some small flexibilities there, but I think ultimately that we’re tied by the 220.

“It’s more about the debate for 2026, what position we can position ourselves in.

“I listened to  Teagasc over the last few days, and 220, a lot of farmers will be able to survive and work effectively.

“The key thing is in Ireland on the ground, farmers are taking a lot of very proactive measures to improve water quality, and they need to get recognised.”

Minister for Further and Higher Education Simon Harris said it was in “everybody’s interests, including farmers, that we have good water quality”.

“We face a massive environmental crisis in our country and in our world.

“But it’s also important that farmers are listened to and that they’re heard.

“And what I’ve heard from farmers, and I’ve spoken to the (Irish Farmers’ Association) and others here today, is we obviously have the framework now.

“But we will very shortly also be discussing what happens beyond that.

“And I think it’s really important that team Ireland, all of us pull together to get the best deal for Irish farmers as part of that discussion.

“And that’s why I think it’s timely it timely that the Taoiseach and Minister McConalogue invited the Commissioner to come to Ireland.”