Welsh farmers urged to complete water regulations survey

Welsh farmers are being prosecuted and fined for shortfalls in their pollution control record-keeping.

At a launch at the Royal Welsh Showground of a new farmer survey on the Welsh government’s Control of Agricultural Pollution Regulations, NFU Cymru called for a “rush to prosecute and penalise” to be replaced by a “rush to advise and guide”.

Complying with regulations, which were rolled out in 2021, are said to be costing the industry £360m.

See also: Enforcement of Welsh NVZ regs “challenging”, admits WG

Although the Welsh government has committed £20m to help fund some of that infrastructure, NFU Cymru said the regulations were causing “palpable concern and anxiety” for farmers. This was largely due to cost and record-keeping.

Ceredigion dairy farmer Martin Griffiths, who leads NFU Cymru’s Water Quality Review Group, said securing the infrastructure planning permissions that farms need to achieve compliance is another source of worry.

The union has launched an online survey to establish how farmers are coping with the regulations.

Mr Griffiths said the Welsh government’s four-yearly review of these should allow for amendments to make them “practical and achievable”.

“The review must deliver a long-term sustainable solution to the 170kg nitrogen limit from livestock manures, in effect a de-facto stocking limit on Welsh farms,” he said.

It must also support a move away from a farming by calendar approach, he added, instead using a targeting approach to tackle water quality issues where they are needed. 

The review of the regulations, which were introduced in 2021, must be completed by April 2025.

The survey can be accessed on the NFU Cymru website.