Environmental organizations and action farmers find each other

Farmers and environmental organizations seem to be in a kind bien étonnés de se trouver ensemble to have embarked on a battle against failing government policy on nitrogen. Government and legislator appear unable to choose between nature and human interests. The French expression stands for the phenomenon that opposites can sometimes be surprised to find that they meet on the same side of the line.

Mobilization for the Environment (MOB), the nitrogen NGO from Nijmegen, this week made a third enforcement request against farmers to comply with the nitrogen deposition requirements required by the current nature policy. The first round affected farmers from Gelderland, the second Frisian. This time it's the turn of farmers from Overijssel, reports include the Algemeen Dagblad.

According to MOB and the Environment Association, the province of Overijssel is cheating with nitrogen rules. According to the movements, unclear calculation rules mean that approximately 400 mainly agricultural companies have wrongly received a nature permit. Against 50 of them, the two organizations filed a request for enforcement.

Requests not granted
On Foodlog, MOB chairman Johan Vollenbroek explained in the first round that he not expected to grant enforcement requests† The environmental groups are building a case against the government that they believe is negligent by failing to create clear policy frameworks within which permits can be granted or denied.

It is striking that the Farmers Defense Force (FDF) appears to have followed the same strategy as MOB and Environment since the latest farmers' protests on Wednesday 7 July. The farmers' activists asked the provinces to maintain missing or invalid nature permits at several hundred non-farms. In principle, this means they are shutting down those companies, because they are not allowed to carry out their activities without a nature permit.

Frayed nature permits
An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth and 'smoking' is what the organization calls its strategy. On Facebook, the FDF . claims have the guarantee of a provincial driver that enforcement will take place. Also turns out the FDF to be looking for frayed nature permits from supermarket organization Jumbo and other companies† MOB also has a large number of cases ready against non-farm companies, especially against energy companies and aviation infrastructure.

On the Malieveld, Agractie - the initiators of the famous farmers' protest on October 1, 2019 - organized a separate meeting with the theme 'space for farmers'. The organization considers the choice against farmers, as emerged from a stream of reports and advice in recent weeks, as disproportionate in relation to the rest of society. Farmers are willing to work on nature tasks, but not only because everyone has to live their effort.

shake hands
The protests of 7 July seem to fit in with the analysis by agricultural policy watcher Jeroen Candel (WUR) who described the protests of 2 years ago. the result of a classic example of government failure mentioned. Farmers and environmental organizations are rallying together against the government. 'Left' (nature organizations) and 'right' (farmers) - in the language of Dutch dairy farmers' union director Jeroen van Maanen - appear to shake hands. And jointly hold the government responsible for the impasse in the Netherlands since the Council of State canceled the nitrogen policy of the Dutch legislator in May 2019.

Yesterday Van Maanen addressed farmers who protested at Wageningen University against the role that WUR plays in government policy in the context of the July 7 protests† As long as the government does not specify who it will choose, farmers and their opponents will try to shut down the Netherlands.

This article is part of the content collaboration between Boerenbusiness en foodlog.

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