The Council for the Environment and Infrastructure advises the government to lay down a law that the rate at which the peat meadow soil subsides must be reduced by 2030% by 50. The agricultural sector does not feel heard by the authors of the report 'Stop subsidence in peat meadow areas'.
Before 2050, the Council for the Environment and Infrastructure recommends aiming for a 70% reduction in subsidence. The government must also invest in a solid knowledge base and a measurement network for subsidence in peat meadow areas.
zoning maps
With regard to the implementation of the policy, the Council advocates a regional area-oriented approach that is in line with existing structures. In consultation with interested parties, provinces must draw up so-called zoning maps with a prioritization of areas.
The actual implementation can best take place in the areas themselves, which is why the Council proposes to set up regional implementation tables. In this respect, links can be sought with existing collaborative initiatives. It goes without saying that water boards must play an important role in this implementation.
State aid for extensification
For agricultural entrepreneurs in the peat meadow areas, the rise in the groundwater level can have far-reaching consequences due to rewetting. They will usually have to adapt their business operations accordingly, for example by extensification with fewer livestock per hectare or by opting for other crops. According to the Council, they must be supported by the government, both financially and with knowledge. Given the major consequences that inhibiting subsidence has for farmers, the Council believes that this group should be helped by the government (financially and otherwise) to make the transition.
Not looking for support
Initial reactions from stakeholders from the agricultural sector show a general feeling of not being heard or not being heard enough. It is particularly striking that solutions, which the sector itself has been working on for years, such as underwater drainage, are hardly mentioned by the consultant from The Hague and are not seen as a solution.
Ad Baltus from Zuidschermer, candidate member of parliament for the BoerBurgerBeweging, makes the comparison with the ministerial feed measure of LNV minister Schouten, who eventually left the table. "Why doesn't the government sit down with us to look for a solution for which there is support? Now I get the idea that a report is being drawn up in The Hague that should consciously provide space for nature objectives."
slow government
Jaco de Groot from Kamerik, known for www.boerbert.nl, also wonders this. What intentions did the authors of the report have? "The problem of peat burning in mid-summer will only not be solved by raising the level. The sector is willing to change, but the government is slow to make financial resources available. They also do not realize how important the agricultural sector is for the regional food supply."
PPP-Agro advice expert Barend Meerkerk also experiences the bureaucracy in the provision of resources by the government as an obstacle to the energetic development of various initiatives in the region. "Give the areas the necessary resources to use the energy that is available to farmers, the province, the municipality and the water board. An integrated approach simply takes time. Reducing subsidence is something more than just raising the level or opening a pipe. stop the ground." He is pleased, however, that the importance of a regional approach is emphasized by the authors of the report.
Mandatory water level at 20 centimeters?
Although the authors of the report 'Stop subsidence in peat meadow areas' do not specifically mention a mandatory water level of 20 centimeters below ground level in 2030, this is the specter that exists in the agricultural sector. Baltus: "You may continue to live in your house, but your garden will be flooded. If citizens heard that message, they would not accept it. The feeling is no different on farms. It is our land with which we earn our income. have to earn, which is now in danger of being halved without solid compensation. You will not get there with a switch fund alone."
LTO is also of the opinion that the Council for the Environment and Infrastructure now recommends fixing the reduction percentages for subsidence before it is known what the costs are and who will pay for them.
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