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NVZ ACTION PROGRAMME - CONSULTATION SUMMARY

Introduction

1. This paper sets out the Executive's proposals for changes to the Action Programme in the Nitrate Vulnerable Zones ( NVZs) in Scotland. This summary of the Action Programme and of the proposed changes is being sent to all farmers in the NVZs in Scotland. A longer version, which includes a 16-page summary of scientific evidence, is available on the internet at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Consultations/Current .

This consultation is to advise you of the proposed amendments to the current Regulations and guidelines. It also invites your comments on the proposals by 15 February 2007.

Background

2. The Nitrates Directive was adopted by the European Union in 1991. It requires Member States to identify areas where nitrate from agricultural sources has contributed to, or is contributing to, surface waters or groundwater reaching a concentration of 50 milligrams of nitrate per litre (50mg NO3/l). The land which drains into these areas must be designated as nitrate vulnerable zones ( NVZs) and an Action Programme of measures introduced. The Action Programme must include restrictions to prevent the run-off and/or leaching of nitrate.

3. In Scotland 4 NVZs, comprising 14% of the land area, were designated in 2002. The current Action Programme was introduced in Regulations in 2003. The 'Guidelines for farmers in nitrate vulnerable zones' provide general and technical information on the Action Programme, including the completion of the fertiliser and manure plan.

4. The Directive requires Member States to designationsNVZreview the at least once every 4 years. The Scottish designations were reviewed in 2004-05. The findings were that nitrate concentrations in groundwater greater than 50 mg/l could be found in all four of the Scottish NVZs. Concentrations in rivers in Scotland rarely reach 50 mg/l because of the dilution by waters from higher ground. The review concluded that there was no strong reason to amend the present NVZ boundaries in Scotland.

Scientific evidence on nitrates and the NVZ Action Programme

5. The Directive also requires Member States to review the Action Programme measures at least once every 4 years and to consider whether any additional measures may be necessary to achieve the aims of preventing or reducing the losses of nitrate from agriculture. The Executive has carried out the review in the light of the most recent scientific evidence available.

6. Research into the losses of nitrates from agriculture has been commissioned by Defra, taking account of varying agricultural, soil and climatic conditions across Britain. In 2005 the Scottish Executive commissioned research specific to Scotland from the Scottish Agricultural College ( SAC) on the effectiveness of different measures in controlling nitrate losses. The Defra studies have found that certain agricultural practices result in leaching or run-off of nitrate from the soil. In summary, more nitrate is likely to be lost to water where:

• more fertiliser is applied than the crop can take up during its growth. This can occur if too much nitrogen fertiliser is applied or insufficient account has been taken of the residual nitrogen in the soil from previous fertiliser applications;
• livestock are concentrated into small areas;
• applications of manures or other fertilisers are made close to watercourses;
• slurries and manures are applied in a way that results in large quantities running off the land; and
• slurry and manure storage facilities are not large enough to hold the volumes produced on the farm in the winter period, resulting in slurry spreading at inappropriate times.

7. The SAC research has shown that a substantial proportion of nitrate in slurry that is applied in the autumn months, as much as half in some cases, will be leached before the next growing season. The rate of leaching is high for slurry applied in September-December but is much reduced for slurry applied in January. Run-off risks are associated with wet weather.

8. Nitrate losses occur from all soils, although the nature and rate of loss varies. The nature and rate of loss are particularly influenced by soil type, cropping and climate. Soil losses increase with permeability. The risk of leaching is at the highest on sandy or shallow soils, and the current Action Programme contains measures specific to them. But there can be moderate or even high risks associated with other soil types.

9. From the studies we have concluded that:

• the risk of nitrate loss from organic manures applies to all soils;
• the length of the closed periods needs to be extended to prevent leaching and surface run-off of nitrates to waters in autumn and winter months; and
• farmyard manure, which is low in available nitrogen, can be applied to land without significant risk to the water environment.

Proposed revision of the NVZ Action Programme

10. The aim of the legislation is to protect the water environment from nitrate pollution from agricultural sources. Since livestock farming can involve the production of substantial quantities of manures and slurries, a key objective is to increase the extent to which the nitrate in manure and slurry is used by grass and other crops. The revised Action Programme that we propose therefore seeks to address the risks through measures that:-

• limit the quantities of fertilisers applied
• increase the length of the closed periods and apply them to all soil types; and
• introduce an increase in manure efficiency.

While versions of these measures are already in place in the current Regulations, the changes we propose to make are intended to improve their effectiveness.

11. Key points addressed in the proposed revision are:-

• research results indicate a significant risk of run-off or leaching of nitrates in the winter months. This implies that some of the closed periods in the current Regulations, such as that on the spreading of slurry, are not long enough;
• while there is some risk of loss at any time of year, a balance needs to be struck between using fertilisers for the benefit of soil structure and crop yield and minimising damage to the water environment;
• in defining the closed periods, account needs to be taken of where certain crops give an economic response to N in the early autumn;
• straw-based manures ( FYM), especially stored cattle FYM, have very low available N, and therefore it is not necessary for the closed period to apply to them. Nevertheless, the general restrictions for adverse weather and soil conditions would continue to apply, as they do to all nitrogen fertilisers.

12. The Directive specifies a limit of 170 kg N per hectare per year in organic manures across the farm. The Action Programme in Scotland, as in England and Wales, permits up to 250 kg N/ha on grassland. This will need to be amended to comply with the Directive. It will limit the maximum stocking rate, except where manure is "exported" from the farm.

13. Greater storage capacity for some manures and for slurries will be needed in order for farmers to comply with these proposed changes.

14. An important means of preventing nitrate pollution is to increase the efficiency of the use of manures. If a higher proportion of the N available is being taken up by the crop, there will be a reduction in the N losses, as well as an agricultural benefit. We are therefore proposing to introduce manure efficiency targets as a means of encouraging greater efficiency in the use of fertiliser.

15. The main inputs of N on farms are as fertilisers and as feedstuffs for stock. It is clearly important for farmers to assess crop needs and the risks of nitrate loss, and to keep records of fertiliser applications. These issues will be addressed in the revised fertiliser and manure management plan, which includes risk assessment procedures.

Consultation and Implementation

16. The Executive recognises the vital part that farmers in Scotland play in the protection of the countryside and the rural environment for the benefit of society as a whole and therefore wishes to take a partnership approach in developing revised measures and to involve the industry and others during the public consultation period.

17. Following receipt and consideration of comments, we propose that the amendment Regulations should come into force in stages. The current requirements will continue to apply until the new or amended rules come into force. While the majority of provisions will come into force 6 months after the regulations are made, we propose that the rules relating to the closed periods and manure and slurry storage will come into force on later dates. This is in order to give farmers time to construct new or additional storage facilities where required to meet the needs of the proposed closed periods.

18. In terms of correcting the organic manure deposition limit referred to in paragraph 12 above, we wish to consider the option of introducing at an early date an amendment regulation to replace the 250 kg N/ha limit for grassland with an N loading of 170 kg N/ha for all agricultural land on the farm. This would come into force as soon as practicable (31 March 2007). As a result of this, farmers would need to make any necessary adjustments to reduce their total farm loading (ie. by reducing stocking levels, acquiring more land or exporting the excess manure).

19. A more detailed version of this consultation paper, containing the scientific evidence and impact assessment of the key measures, has been sent to representative organisations such as NFU Scotland. A copy of that version is available on the Executive's website http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Consultations/Current or from SEERAD local offices. To find your nearest public internet access point, you can telephone Freephone 0800 77 1234.

Invitation to Comment

20. You are invited to send written comments on the proposals set out in this summary paper, or the detailed version of the consultation paper, by Thursday 15 February 2007. Your response(s) should be sent to:

waterdivision@scotland.gsi.gov.uk

or

Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department, Water Division, Area 1-H, Victoria Quay, Edinburgh, EH6 6QQ

If you have any queries, please contact Angela Paul on 0131 244 1413.

Handling Your Response

21. We would be grateful if you could clearly indicate in your response which questions or parts of the consultation paper you are responding to as this will aid our analysis of the responses received. We also need to know how you wish your response to be handled and, in particular, whether you are happy for your response to be made public. Please complete and return the Respondent's Information Form at the end of this consultation paper as this will ensure that we treat your response appropriately. If you ask for your response not to be published we will regard it as confidential and we will treat it accordingly.

22. All respondents should be aware that the Scottish Executive is subject to the provisions of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 and would therefore have to consider any request made to it under the Act for information relating to responses made to this consultation exercise.

Next Steps In The Process

23. Where respondents have given permission for their response to be made public (see the attached Respondent's Information Form below), these will be made available to the public in the Scottish Executive Library by Friday 15 March 2007. They will also be placed on the Scottish Executive consultation web pages. We will check all responses where agreement to publish has been given for any potentially defamatory material before logging them in the library or placing them on the website. You can make arrangements to view responses by contacting the SE Library on 0131 244 4565. Responses can be copied and sent to you, but a charge may be made for this service.

Complaints about the process

24. If you have any comments on how this consultation exercise has been conducted, please send them by post, e-mail or fax to:

Postal address: Water Division
Scottish Executive
Area 1-H
Victoria Quay
EDINBURGH
EH6 6QQ
e-mail: waterdivision@scotland.gsi.gov.uk
fax: 0131 244 0245

Questions

25. Your comments are invited on any aspect of the proposed amendments to the current Regulations, whether particular or general . The principal changes proposed are to:-

• revise the farm limit on the quantity of organic nitrogen applied, including the organic manure deposition, to 170 N kg/ha across all farm land (-this limit already applies to arable land);
• include with slurry, poultry manure and liquid digested sewage sludge other organic matter high in available N (eg slurry from livestock markets, and blood from abattoirs or poultry preparation plants) in the group of restricted manures and fertilisers to which the closed periods apply;
• extend the closed periods for the above organic manures and apply the closed period to all soil types. In particular your views are sought on which of the 2 options for the closed periods should apply;
• revise the fertiliser and manure management plan to include a farm risk assessment map;
• strengthen the requirements on storage capacity for livestock manures, including requiring a minimum 6 months' storage for intensive pig and poultry units;
• introduce other nitrogen management measures to increase the efficient use of manures and to reduce further the risks of leaching and run-off pollution to water; and
• revise the record-keeping requirements to reflect the above changes.

In addition to any other views you may wish to make on these amendments, the following questions might be addressed in your comments:-

• Are the amendments clear in relation to the responsibilities which they assign? Please indicate what aspects (if any) need to be specified more clearly.
• Do you consider that, in terms of providing protection for waters against pollution from agricultural sources, the proposed amendments are inadequate, adequate or excessive? Please provide supporting information or comment for your opinion.

Summary of the proposed amendments to the Action Programme for Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (Scotland) Regulations 2003

1. This consultation document summarises the proposals for a revised Action Programme which includes revision to existing measures and measures that are now considered necessary, in the light of developing science and expertise, to meet the legal requirements of the nitrates legislation. The final revised Action Programme may differ slightly from the information presented here as a result of the consultation exercise.

2. The key proposed amendments affect the :-

• limits on the quantity of organic N applied, including the farm based loading limit for organic manure;
• closed periods when the application of certain types of fertilisers are prohibited;
• fertiliser and manure management plan (which will include a risk assessment map)
• rules on storage capacity for livestock manures;
• other N management measures that are consistent with good agricultural practice and which promote N efficiency; and
• record-keeping requirements

3. The provisions of the current Regulations concerning implementation of the Action Programme, appeals, monitoring procedures and offence provisions will remain unchanged . This document sets out the amendments to the Schedule to the current Action Programme measures. For ease of reference the existing rules which we do not propose to change are headed 'current' and the proposed measures which amend current rules or are new are in italics and headed ' new'.

Citation, Commencement and Extent - Current

4. These Regulations extend to Scotland only.

Citation, Commencement and Extent - New

5. As indicated in paragraphs 17 and 18 in the Consultation and Implementation section above, we propose that the amended regulations should come into force in stages as follows:-

Definitions - Current

6. The following terms used in the current Regulations are defined as indicated below:-

"autumn sown crop" means:-

(a) a cover crop sown before 1 October and not removed (whether by mechanical cultivation, herbicide or grazing) before 1 December in the same year; and
(b) a crop, not being a cover crop, sown between 1 August and 1 October in any year;

"chemical fertiliser" means nitrogen fertiliser which is manufactured by an industrial process;

"coastal waters" and "inland waters" have the same meaning as in section 30A(1) of the Control of Pollution Act 1974,

"cover crop" means a crop sown primarily for the purpose of taking up nitrogen from the soil and which is not harvested;

"crop requirement" means the amount of nitrogen fertiliser which it is reasonable to apply to land in any year having regard to the foreseeable nitrogen requirement of the crop growing or to be grown on the land and the nitrogen supply to the crop from the soil and from other sources, including any previous applications of livestock and other organic manures;

"fertiliser and manure plan" means a plan to assess the crop requirement for nitrogen fertiliser for each crop on each field each year and to establish the quantities of livestock manure (referred to as 'waste ' in the 2003 Regulations) produced and safe methods of collection, storage and land-application;

"grassland" means land on which the vegetation consists predominantly of grass species;

"livestock" means any animal kept for use or profit;

"livestock manure" means waste products excreted by livestock or a mixture of litter and waste products excreted by livestock, even in processed form;

"nitrogen compound" means any nitrogen-containing substance other than gaseous molecular nitrogen;

"nitrogen fertiliser" means any substance containing a nitrogen compound utilised on land to enhance growth of vegetation;

"organic manure" means:-

(a) livestock manure; and
(b) nitrogen fertiliser, not being livestock manure or chemical fertiliser, derived from organic matter,

and includes sewage sludge and other organic wastes;

"sandy" in relation to soil means sandy, sandy loamy and loamy sand soils where in the layer up to 40cm deep and in the layer between 40cm and 80cm deep there is:-

(a) more than 50 per cent by weight of sand sized particles (that is particles more than 0.06mm and less than 2mm in diameter);
(b) less than 18 per cent by weight of clay sized particles (that is particles less than 0.002mm in diameter); and
(c) less than 5 per cent by weight of organic carbon;
"shallow" in relation to soil means less than 40cm deep;
"slurry" means:-

(a) excreta, including any liquid fraction, produced by livestock whilst in a yard or building; or
(b) a mixture consisting wholly of or containing such excreta, bedding, feed residues, rainwater and washings from a building or yard used by livestock, dungsteads or middens, high level slatted buildings and weeping wall structures or any combination of these, provided such excreta is present, of a consistency that allows it to be pumped or discharged by gravity at any stage in the handling process;

"spring sown crop" means a crop sown between 1 February and 31 July in the same year;

"year" means, unless provided otherwise, any period of 12 months ending with 31 December.

Definitions - New

7. We are considering adding the following definitions:-

"farmyard manure" means a mixture of bedding material and animal excreta in solid form arising from the housing of cattle, sheep and other livestock except poultry, including the stackable solids fraction from mechanical separation of slurry other than pig slurry", and

"restricted manures and fertilisers" mean slurries, poultry manure, liquid digested sewage sludge, slurry from livestock markets, and blood from abattoirs or poultry preparation plants.

Nitrogen Application Limit - Current

8. The land application of nitrogen fertiliser must take account of the following local environmental factors:-

(a) soil conditions, type and slope;
(b) climatic conditions, rainfall and irrigation; and
(c) land use and agricultural practices, including crop rotation systems.

Nitrogen fertiliser must not be applied to any land in excess of crop requirement, and must take account of crop uptake and soil supply from organic matter, crop residues and organic manures. (Note: detailed guidance on how to calculate the nitrogen requirement of crops and grassland can be found in the booklet 'Fertiliser and Manure Plans - Part 1, Determining crop and grassland N requirements' of the 'Guidelines for farmers in nitrate vulnerable zones'.)

9. For any individual field, the application of organic N is limited to 250 kg/ha in any 12 month period. This individual field limit excludes any grazing deposition.

Nitrogen application limit - New

10. The farm based limit - that is the loading of organic material to land on a farm holding within the NVZ, including manure that is mechanically spread and that deposited by the animals themselves - must not exceed 170 kg/ha/year total N averaged over the agricultural area of the farm. This in effect means that the current limit of 250 kg N/ha for grassland will be reduced to 170 kg N/ha so that it is in line with the limit for all other agricultural land on the farm.

Note: In terms of a grassland derogation, the European Commission has advised that it will not open discussions on any such derogation for the UK until all the UK Action Programmes comply with the requirements of the Directive.

11. The amended Regulations will include a revised table of standard reference figures for the nitrogen content of livestock excreta - see Appendix below.(This will replace the table which is currently contained at table E in the tables booklet of the 'Guidelines for farmers in nitrate vulnerable zones'.) This table and the calculation system given in the revised guidelines for farmers in NVZs must be used to assess nitrogen fertiliser crop requirement. Any farmer wishing to deviate from the calculation values contained in this table and/or calculation system must obtain prior approval from SEERAD and to demonstrate that the deviation is based on a scientific case (eg using nitrate levels derived from actual calculations of N in diet and excreta of livestock on the farm).

12. The revised Action Programme will establish maximum limits for the amount of nitrogen that can be applied to each crop (averaged over the whole farm) in the cropping season. This will be based on a revision of the current SAC Recommendations.

13. We propose to introduce targets for increasing manure N efficiency over the next 4 years of the Action Programme. This is in order to encourage the application of organic manure applications in the spring and early summer rather than the autumn. This would require the farmer to reach, at least, the levels of efficiency set out in Table 1 below. However, where the timing and method of application would suggest a greater efficiency, then that figure should be used for the purpose of calculating the crop requirement.

Table 1

14. This means that, in situations where manure is applied in autumn and does not meet the minimum required nitrogen efficiency, the farmer will be required to assume that the minimum amount of nitrogen has been made available to the crop from the manure. He/she will not be allowed to apply additional nitrogen to the crop to compensate for any nitrogen deficiency arising from this assumption.

Closed Periods When No Fertiliser Applications Should Be Made - Current

15. Chemical nitrogen fertiliser must not be applied to land during the periods specified in Table 2 below:

Table 2

Closed Periods When No Fertiliser Applications Should Be Made - New

16. Chemical fertiliser - To simplify the rules, we propose to repeal the requirement to notify SEERAD within 3 days of applying chemical fertilisers for specific crops where there is known to be a requirement for autumn N. Instead, we propose that the Regulations will allow the application of chemical nitrogen fertilisers up to the end of September for oilseed rape, other brassicas and catch crops used as fodder. For cereal crops we propose to continue with issuing annual guidance notes, until the results of the current research are known.

17. Organic manures - The closed periods will apply to "restricted manures and fertilisers" - ie slurries, poultry manure, liquid digested sewage sludge, slurry from livestock markets, and blood from abattoirs or poultry preparation plants. The closed periods will not apply to farmyard manures ( FYM) or other organic manures which have a low available N content.

18. This consultation seeks your views on which of the 2 options below should be chosen to apply to the NVZs. Restricted manures and fertilisers (as defined in paragraph 17 above), such as slurries, may not be applied during the closed periods:-

either

or the simpler

Fertiliser and Manure Plans - Current

19. A fertiliser and manure plan must be prepared and implemented each year to:-

• establish the quantities of livestock manure produced on the farm,
• demonstrate sufficient storage capacity and land available for spreading organic manure,
• contain an assessment of the amount of nitrogen available to grass and crops following application of organic manure, and
• contain an assessment of crop and grass requirement for nitrogen fertiliser in each field taking account of nitrogen supply from soil organic matter, crop residues and organic manure.

Fertiliser and Manure Management Plans - New

20. We propose that it will be obligatory to prepare the fertiliser and manure management plan in accordance with the revised guidelines for farmers in NVZs. The current guidelines will be revised to include more detail on steps and calculations that need to be taken into account in drawing up the fertiliser and manure management plan.

21. We also propose to revise the content of the manure and fertiliser management plan to include a risk assessment plan. (This will be based on the 4 Point Plan.) The risk assessment plan must include a map on which is marked the areas identified where no spreading may take place, and the areas of low, medium and high risk of nitrogen fertiliser causing harm to the water environment. The manure and fertiliser management plan must also include precautions on the storage of, and record keeping for, solid manures - (solid organic manure with high available nitrogen content to be stored on concrete during the closed period, whilst solid manures with low available nitrogen content may be stored in the field).

Storage of Slurry/Poultry Manure - Current

22. The capacity of storage facilities must be sufficient to hold all the slurry/poultry manure that cannot be applied due to closed periods except where it can be demonstrated that any livestock manure in excess of the storage capacity will be disposed of in a manner which will not cause harm to the environment. (Note: guidance on how to calculate the amount of slurry produced by livestock and storage requirement is given in the 'Guidelines for farmers in nitrate vulnerable zones'.)

Storage of Slurry/Poultry Manure - New

23. The minimum storage capacity for organic manure required for the farm must be calculated in accordance with the requirements for the manure and fertiliser management plan, which will be set out in the revised guidelines for farmers in NVZs.

24. In calculating the capacity of storage facilities for livestock manure, the circumstances where less capacity will apply are:-

where the farmer has a contract which provides access to adequate alternative storage capacity located outside the holding;

where the farmer has a contract for access to a treatment facility for livestock manure;

where the farmer has a contract for the transfer of the manure to a person authorised under and in accordance with the Pollution Prevention and Control (Scotland) Regulations 2000 for the collection, recovery or disposal of the manure; or

the livestock are kept indoors for less than 6 months of the year.

25. Without prejudice to the above generalities, 26 weeks' storage capacity will be required on a holding which has livestock manure produced by pigs or by housed poultry. This rule will not apply where the following conditions are met:-

for pigs

(a) there are no more than 100 pigs on the holding at any time and
(b) in accordance with the amended regulations, there is sufficient land on the holding for the application of all livestock manure produced

for poultry

(a) tillage or grassland farming is carried out on the holding, and
(b) there are no more than 2,000 poultry places on the holding, and
(c) in accordance with the amended regulations, there is sufficient land on the holding for the application of all livestock manure produced.

26. Manures that are stored in field middens must be stackable and comply with the requirements set out in the manure and fertiliser management plan section of the revised guidelines for farmers in NVZs. We are proposing that the following storage requirements apply prior to spreading:-

(a) solid manures with high readily available N content ³ must be stored during the closed period, either in the livestock house, or on concrete with adequate leachate facilities,
(b) manures of lower available N content may be stored in temporary field heaps, or on concrete if there is no suitable field site. Manures of lower available N content are:-

• farmyard manure (pig, cattle, horse, goat, or sheep),
• a mixture of livestock excreta and bedding removed from housing and of a consistency that allows stacking in a heap without generating leachate. (This will include manures which have been drained on concrete for a sufficient period until leachate generation ceases),
• other non-livestock organic manures which contain low available nitrogen and do not generate leachate, and
• poultry manure from deep litter housing systems (but NOT any other poultry manure).

Subject to the requirements of The Pollution Prevention and Control (Scotland) Regulations 2000 (in which a limit of 12 months field storage applies for some pig and poultry businesses), field middens must not be situated:-

• on the land in any field for more than 15 successive months,
• within 'no spread areas' as identified on the farm risk assessment plan, or
• on the site of a cleared field midden until at least 3 years have passed since that previous field midden was cleared.

Other Restrictions on Nitrogen Application - Current

27. Nitrogen fertiliser must not be applied to any land if:-

(a) the soil is waterlogged;
(b) the land is flooded;
(c) the soil has been frozen for 12 hours or longer in the preceding 24 hours; or
(d) the land is covered by snow.

Note : Questions have been raised about lifting the restriction on applying FYM to frozen ground. However, there is no research which demonstrates the given circumstances and conditions when the risks would be minimal. We consider that, at the present time, no change should be made to the current rules above.

28. Nitrogen fertiliser must be applied to land in as accurate and uniform a manner as is practicably possible consistent with good agricultural practice.

29. Nitrogen fertiliser must not be applied to steeply sloping fields in a manner which is inconsistent with good agricultural practice.

30. Chemical fertiliser must not be applied to any land in a location or manner that makes it likely that the chemical fertiliser will directly enter any inland or coastal waters.

31. Organic manure must not be applied to any land which is situated fewer than:-

(a) 10 metres from any inland or coastal waters; or
(b) 50 metres from any well, borehole or similar work sunk into underground strata for the purposes of any water supply.

32. Where any land on a farm has been used in any year to produce a leafy vegetable crop:-

(a) any further cultivation of that land prior to 1st December of that year shall be for autumn sown crops only;
(b) any preparation of that land for a spring crop shall not commence before 1st December of that year; and
(c) any unharvested residues of that crop shall be:-

(i) removed from the nitrate vulnerable zone; or
(ii) left in field and incorporated into the soil during cultivation for autumn sown crops; or
(iii) by 1st October of that year, incorporated in field with a suitable binding material; or
(iv) left in field and incorporated into the soil during cultivation for the next spring sown crop.

Note: In the paragraph above -

"leafy vegetable crop" means a crop whose leaves or flowers are marketed as:-

(a) compact or loose vegetative organs; or
(b) immature flowers;

"unharvested residues" of a leafy vegetable crop includes discarded stems and leaves and rejected vegetables; and

"a suitable binding material" means a cellulose-based binding material which shall have a carbon to nitrogen ratio exceeding 50:1

33. Field middens must be sited at least:-

(a) 10 metres from any inland or coastal waters; or
(b) 50 metres from any well, borehole or similar work sunk into underground strata for the purposes of any water supply.

Other Restrictions on Nitrogen Application - New

34. The calculation system given in the revised guidelines for farmers in NVZs must be used to assess nitrogen fertiliser crop requirement.

35. Chemical fertilisers must not be applied within 2 metres of inland or coastal waters.

36. Organic manure must not be applied to any field which has an average gradient of 15 degrees (1 in 3) or more or to unimproved land. For fields with an average gradient less than 15 degrees (1 in 3), any organic manure must be applied in accordance with the requirements for high, moderate or low risk areas set out in the fertiliser and manure management plan (see paragraph 21 above). The organic manure listed in column 1 of Table 3 below must not be applied to land in excess of the maximum limit listed in column 2 of Table 3 during:-

(a) the 4 week period prior to the beginning of the closed period referred to above for the type of land in question; and
(b) the period from the end of that closed period until 28 February

Table 3

Only one type of fertiliser may be applied, rather than a combination of any of the fertilisers listed in the table above. However, more than one application may be made in these transitional periods, provided the total is not exceeded.

37. Organic manure with lower available nitrogen content (see paragraph 26(b) above) may be applied to bare ground subject to any GAEC (cross compliance) conditions. For restricted manures and fertilisers applied to bare ground, the land must be drilled with a crop within 6 weeks of application;

38. A period of 3 weeks must be left between each application of livestock manure to a field.

39. Slurry must not be applied to land by means of (a) high trajectory raised splash plates or (b) high pressure techniques that cause atomisation or drifting when spreading.

Record Keeping - Current

40. Farm records must be must be retained for a period of 5 years, and be sufficient to enable any person inspecting them to ascertain:-

(a) the area of the farm;
(b) fields with sandy or shallow soils ( amended see new section below)
(c) for each field comprised in the farm:-

(i) the area of the field;
(ii) the quantity of any chemical fertiliser applied to the field, the nitrogen content of that chemical fertiliser;
(iii) the quantity of any organic manure applied (other than by the animals themselves) to the field and the date of application;
(iv) whether organic manure applied to the field (other than by the animals themselves) was farmyard manure, poultry manure, slurry, sewage sludge or other organic manure; and
(v) the type of any crop grown and the date the crop is sown;

(d) the number of livestock kept on the farm, their species and type, and the length of time for which they were kept on the farm;
(e) the quantity of each type of livestock manure (whether farmyard manure, slurry, poultry manure, or other livestock manure) moved off the farm, the date of that movement and the name and address of the consignee;
(f) the quantity of each type of livestock manure (whether farmyard manure, slurry, poultry manure, or other livestock manure) moved onto the farm, the date of that movement and the name and address of the consignor; and
(g) the fertiliser and manure plan for the farm.

Record Keeping - New

41. Records are currently required to be kept over each 12 month period beginning on 19 December. We propose that this is changed to 1st January of each year so that the date coincides with recording requirements under the rural development programme.

42. A record must be kept of the risk assessment carried out on farms where organic fertiliser is applied. The risk assessment must be completed in accordance with requirements in the revised guidelines for farmers in NVZs.

43. In addition to the current requirements, farm records must include:-

(h) the amount and type of chemical fertiliser brought on to the farm, used on the farm, and retained on the farm in each year;
(i) the soil type in each field; and
(j) the data to support the use of any non-standard excretion values, where prior approval has been obtained from SEERAD to deviate from these calculation values.

APPENDIX

Standard reference figures for the nitrogen content of livestock excreta, to be used in the 170 kg N/ha whole farm organic loading limit calculation.

Proposed N output standards for cattle, with allowances for gaseous N losses before landspreading

1 values of excretal output derived from calculated manure N output and typical manure N content
2 N losses as NH ³ and N ² and N ²O gases during the housing period, during storage and from the grazing period, as appropriate - ( ) loss of N as % of N in fresh excreta
3 based on average milk yield of 6973 kg per annum, 355 day lactation and 60 dry day period
4 beef suckler includes calf up to weaning age; calculations include allowance for non-milk N (grazing) consumed by calf
5 calves weaned at 8 weeks; output per calf to 8 weeks is 1.6 kgN. For specialist calf units with 7 days to restock (5.8 cycles/yr) annual output estimated at 9.3 kgN

Proposed N output standards for goats, sheep and horses, with allowances for gaseous N losses before landspreading

1 N losses as NH ³ and N ² and N ²O gases during the housing period, during storage and from the grazing period, as appropriate - ( ) loss of N as % of N in fresh excreta
2 for N intake in diet with 26 g N/kg DM - annual intake estimated at 18.2 kg N
3 based on forage and concentrate (N and P) intake for a 400kg working horse doing moderate work on fresh grass-based diet and over-wintered on hay

Proposed N output standards for pigs, with allowances for gaseous N losses before landspreading

1 N losses as NH ³ and N ² and N ²O gases during the housing period, during storage and from the grazing period, as appropriate - ( ) loss of N as % of N in fresh excreta
2 sows + piglets based on 2.3 litters per year; farrowing + lactation covering c. 35 days (22%); service & dry period 122 days (78%). Piglets weaned at 21- 28 days @ 7 kg live weight
3 estimate of daily FYM output from slurry production figure, with 20% addition of straw in the case of sows & litters and 15% straw addition for growing pigs & maiden gilts
4 estimate for maiden gilt based on 70 day period (90 - 130kg LW); for pig place 45% sow replacement per year and occupancy of c. 80%
5 estimated output for individual stages where growth managed in dedicated housing, with 7 days between batches for cleaning & re-stocking (% occupancy estimated
6 where calculation of N balance pig taken from weaned piglet at c. 3 weeks to finishing t 100 kg LW

Proposed N output standards for poultry, with allowances for gaseous N losses before landspreading

1 N losses as NH ³ and N ² and N ²O gases during the housing period, during storage and from the grazing period, as appropriate - ( ) loss of N as % of N in fresh excreta
2 bird places in each of the stock categories
3 approx 392 day cycle, with approx 14 days empty between cycles for re-stocking
4 approx 7.4 cycles per year, each of 40 days, with approx 1 week between cycles for clearing the house and cleaning
5 estimated for "bird place" in specialist pullet production assuming 14 days between cycles and potential for 2.9 cycles per year
6 estimated 2.4 cycles of c. 140 days per year, with 14 days between crops cleaning time, approx. 91% occupancy
7 estimated 3.1 cycles of c. 105 days per year, with 14 days between crops cleaning time, approx. 88% occupancy

Respondent's Information Form

Consultation on proposed amendments to the Action Programme for Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (Scotland) Regulations 2003

Please tear this page out, complete the details below and send it to us with your response. This will help ensure we handle your response appropriately:

Please return this information form with your comments on the proposed amendments by Thursday 15 February 2007.

your comment with this form may be sent by post, e-mail or fax to:-

Postal address:

e-mail: waterdivision@scotland.gsi.gov.uk
fax: 0131 244 0245

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