Another week, another farmer fined for polluting our waterways.
I’m not going to name and shame the man here as he did the right thing and pleaded guilty in court - leading to a fine of £1,000.
What I want to talk about is why this keeps happening, why the fines are so small and even in cases when pollution is confirmed, so few actually face the courts.
Read more: Drinking water in NI not complying with lead, E.coli and pesticide standards
A quick trawl through my email inbox shows farmers, companies and NI Water are being continually fined paltry sums for the problems their pollution causes wildlife.
The reasons range from silage run off to slurry spills, overflowing effluent tanks and even when incidents cause massive fish kills does the penalty result in the most severe punishments available.
We know from Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs publications that NI is abysmally failing to meet our own water quality standards.
Following a freedom of information request to DAERA, I can tell you the largest share of confirmed water pollution incidents reported to Northern Ireland Environment Agency come from farms - and it’s been the same since 2017.
- Of the 872 confirmed pollution incidents across NI in 2021 - 253 were from farms - yet just nine farmers were convicted
- In 2020, there were 947 confirmed reports - 296 from farms - six farmers were convicted
- In 2019, we had 943 confirmed pollution incidents - 343 from farms - again six farmers were convicted
- In 2018, 284 of the confirmed pollution incidents were on farms and eight resulted in farmers being convicted
- And in 2017, 304 of the 1029 confirmed pollution incidents were on farms - leading to 13 farm convictions
Don’t get me wrong here, industry and Northern Ireland Water were also responsible for a large number of incidents and the conviction figures are just as dire (0.8%-2% overall).
But what’s being done to stop it? Going by the figures, which are not going the way we should hope, very little.
A quick trawl through DAERA’s website would have you believe this issue is being taken seriously. They outline how polluters can face fines up to £20,000 or three months in jail, or both.
Yet rarely in all the emails I’ve had from them about water pollution incidents in recent years, do penalties meet that level.
So what message does that give the farmers, companies and water agencies? It tells them it’s probably always cheaper to pollute away and pay the paltry court fines, than it is to pay out to stop it happening in the first place.
This is a fixable problem and ridiculous campaigns like painting a yellow fish near waterways is not going to cut it.
Fish are floundering, we know biodiversity is in crisis. Yet this is the best our former minister for agriculture and the environment can come up with when a lot of farms clearly need bigger or better slurry tanks and improved silage systems? It’s a joke.
We need to start at the very beginning and that’s with the apparently broken system overseeing this mess.
The wishy washy Nutient Action Programme Regulations (NI) 2019 farms don’t appear to be delivering.
According to the legislation “the capacity of storage facilities for livestock manure and silage effluent of a holding shall be sufficient and adequate to provide for the storage of all the livestock manure and silage effluent which is likely to require storage on the holding for such period as may be necessary to ensure compliance with these Regulations and the avoidance of water pollution”.
I don’t know about you but I see some loopholes in that sentence.
Couldn’t a farmer just say, I didn’t think it will be “likely” I’d need bigger or more slurry tanks, even when they do.
The rules also state the “total livestock manure storage capacity on holdings shall be sufficient for at least 22 weeks storage” but if it’s for pigs or chickens, it should be “26 weeks”.
Farmers are not allowed to spread slurry for around 16 weeks of the year because the rain will wash it straight into waterways, causing more ammonia and nitrate pollution.
I know some feel immune to that rule and can be seen spraying their stench across the countryside even when they shouldn’t be.
But I also know of dairy farms where cows never leave the shed, and can be housed for 52 weeks of the year.
That’s a hell of a lot of slurry to keep in tanks until you are allowed to spread it.
As with any problem in life, the best way to deliver results fast is to tackle the biggest issue first. And when so many farms are causing pollution incidents, I might be inclined to increase that 22 or 26 week period fair bit to ensure everyone has enough room for the slurry their animals are producing.
We and our wildlife deserve clean water, just as we deserve clean air. But the powers that be are clearly not delivering on either.
It’s high time we had an independent environment agency to make them.
I can't wait for a greener Belfast
I don't know about you but I am absolutely delighted Belfast City Council is is rolling out grants to make the city greener.
Some time back I hit out at the lack of greenery, saying people in more deprived areas deserve trees too.
Now Belfast businesses, social enterprises, charities and schools can apply for grants of £500-£3000 to help.
Councillor Ryan Murphy, Chair of Belfast City Council’s City Growth and Regeneration Committee said: “We’ve made a commitment in our Bolder Vision for Belfast that we’ll make the city greener – to improve our quality of life, help combat pollution, make a positive contribution to our environment and encourage people to spend more time in the city centre.
“We’d like to hear from groups and organisations who’d be keen to help us – by installing structures to help plants grow vertically on building facades, exterior walls or hoarding, developing urban gardens in derelict sites or introducing wildlife.”
But you’ll have to be quick as the closing date for applications is 4pm on Monday, December 12.
There will be an online Grey to Green information session at 12.30pm on Tuesday, November 29 to provide more detail and answer any questions groups may have.
To register or request an expression of interest questionnaire, email belfasti@belfastcity.gov.uk.
Don't get sucked into the Black Friday con
Black Friday is a con folks - don’t get sucked in. Just have a look at what Which is saying about how the supposed deals being offered, just aren’t.
We do a secret Santa in my family to cut down the buying of needless things. With everyone feeling it tight this year, just think of what you could save.
Time to get your spring bulbs in the ground
I know Christmas trees are on everyone’s minds right now. If you can, I’d urge you to get one that comes in a bucket and can go in the garden after you take it down in January. But it’s also time to get planting your bulbs for spring!
The Phantom Planter has been out and about giving 1000 baby daffodils a new home. He said: “These will really light up the middle of the orchard this coming spring as we planted them right in the centre in a large ring, cant wait to see it!”
What are you waiting for?
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