On Monday, 24 October, Proeftuin Natura 2000 Overijssel was officially opened in De Lutte. Proeftuin Natura 2000 aims to create development perspectives for agriculturalists around Natura 2000 areas and to realise Natura 2000 objectives in the province of Overijssel.
Henk Bleker, Deputy Minister for Economic Affairs, Agriculture and the Environment, and Hester Maij, from the Overijssel Provincial Executive see Proeftuin as an excellent opportunity to get some serious work done
Deputy Minister Henk Bleker, practical and pragmatic, said: ‘The best outcome would be if, at the end of the year, the government, provinces, conservation organisations, water boards, businesses and other players could decide to get the Programmatic Approach to Nitrogen off the ground. It will never work perfectly for anyone, but with ninety percent agreement we can at least make a good start.' It was a fitting statement for the official launch of Proeftuin Natura 2000 Overijssel, because basically what this project is about is a joint effort to develop tools to reduce ammonia emissions and to find growth potential for agricultural entrepreneurs.
Collaboration of different partners
Proeftuin Natura 2000 is a collaboration of different partners co-funded by the Province of Overijssel, the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation, LTO Noord Fondsen and the Dairy Product Marketing Board. LTO Noord, Wageningen UR and Projecten LTO Noord are responsible for the implementation. Proeftuin Natura 2000 Overijssel combines the practical application and development of techniques and standards with knowledge sharing between livestock holders. Practical tools and techniques are co-developed together with agriculturalists for farms with a future in and near Natura 2000 areas. Together these make up the toolkit for lowering ammonia emissions.
Potential for expansion
Bleker spoke in his capacity as Deputy Minister of Agriculture. Hester Maij from the Overijssel Provincial Executive made the link to her own province and the Proeftuin. Maij: ‘Immediately after this meeting I will be talking to Henk Bleker and the representative for Gelderland, Jan Jacob van Dijk, about the PAN. If we can start with ninety percent then I, for one, will be more than happy. The province is investing heavily in Proeftuin Natura 2000 Overijssel in the firm belief that it can develop good, innovative ideas that will enable businesses to expand and that it will have a salutary effect on the region as a whole. What we develop here in Overijssel can be applied throughout the Netherlands’.
According to guest speaker Martin Scholten, General Director of the Animal Sciences Group at Wageningen UR, there are plenty of ideas ready and waiting: ‘To actually use them, we need to think in terms of customisation. We will never lower ammonia emissions with a generic policy. It’s all about tools and standards that need to be tested in practice, and that calls for flexibility in the policy and regulations’. Hester Maij says that the partners must make allowances for this flexibility within the limits of the law.
Legal security for entrepreneurs
Siem Jan Schenk, Chair of LTO Noord, stressed the uniqueness of the collaboration in Proeftuin Natura 2000 Overijssel: ‘In this project the government, the research community and the business sector are putting their heads together to find and develop solutions. Tools are urgently needed in our sector but entrepreneurs should also be assured of legal security when they apply them. The efforts to reduce ammonia emissions must be linked to business development. That way, we will definitely get the farmers on board.’
Ready for the future?
Jan and Annelies Reimer made their farm in De Lutte available for the start of this project. These inspired dairy farmers have been interweaving wildlife and landscape in their business for years. It emerged during the guided tour that, thanks to their good management, the nitrogen efficiency on their farm is above average. Whether the farm is actually ready for the future or whether further tools are needed to reduce ammonia emissions is still unclear at present. It will all depend on the policy lines. If Bleker’s goal is realised, it should be clear by the New Year what the farmers need to concentrate on.
For more information on this project visit the website of Proeftuin Natura 2000. You can also sign up for the newsletter. Or follow the progress on LinkedIn and Twitter (@ProeftuinN2000).