Too many nitrogen lawsuits, but do they stand a chance?

The number of lawsuits filed against the government's nitrogen policy is piling up. After Farmers Defense Force, LTO and earlier environmental organization MOB took legal action, Agractie has now also announced that it will file a lawsuit.

Agractie wants to enforce a halving of air traffic in court. The farmer's advocate thinks it's crazy that a return ticket to Barcelona by plane costs the same as a return ticket from Groningen to Breda by train. Agractie also finds it ridiculous that family farms have to give way to allow for more nitrogen emissions from air traffic. That is why the organization advocates halving air traffic instead of halving the livestock and wants to enforce this in court.

Ammonia vs Other Nitrogen
Action group Farmers Defense Force (FDF) previously announced a trip to court want to make in order to legally undermine the emergency legislation and the underlying nitrogen policy of the cabinet. FDF focuses on the distinction that is often made between ammonia-nitrogen (NH3) from livestock farming and other forms of nitrogen (NOX) produced by industry, traffic and construction.

From a chemical point of view, they differ from each other, but in the case of so-called external netting (in which nitrogen is bought from livestock farming in order to be able to develop livestock farming activities), this chemical distinction does not form an obstacle for the cabinet. While the effect on nature is demonstrably different, FDF judges, especially in the extra production of particulate matter.

latent space
As the first agricultural advocacy organization, LTO announced a lawsuit because of the intake of so-called latent nitrogen space in the permits. This expires if there is external netting.

Lawsuits are not only brought by the agricultural sector in the aftermath of the PAS legislation, which has been annulled by the Council of State. Environmental group Mobilization for the Environment (MOB) led by Johan Vollenbroek also continues to litigate, supported by previous success that started the entire nitrogen crisis. MOB challenged the legalization of grazing and fertilization in livestock farming, but stopped this lawsuit at the last minute† The action group remains of the opinion that the permit for grazing and fertilization should become a permanent part of the nature permit.

Chance of success
What chance do those who have filed lawsuits because of the nitrogen crisis stand? Legal specialist Willem Bruil does not give agricultural advocates much of a chance. “Anyone who can demonstrate that the nitrogen emission permits are not in order can file a case about this in court. But I expect the same course of action as in the handling of phosphate rights cases by the Trade and Industry Appeals Tribunal (CBB).”

Livestock farmers - who have taken massive steps to court because of the introduction of phosphate rights - are only sparingly found to be in the right. Several hundred cases of the more than 1.500 in total still need to be dealt with. Bruis: “It is unjust that so few litigants are found in the right. Apparently, the judge always finds an argument to put farmers in the wrong.”

Incomprehension about statements phosphate
With regard to phosphate, Bruil argues that the court should not use a specific date as the reference point, but a longer period. For example, the entire year 2014 or a period up to the reference date of 2 July 2015. He also believes that it is unjust to find fault with those who have entered into irreversible obligations.

Compensation can be in the form of a sum of money instead of phosphate rights. Bruis: "Then it is also possible to discount the entrepreneurial risk. This is how it was in the past in lawsuits about plan damage in livestock farming. Why not now?"

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