Are municipalities participating in the remediation of pig farming?

An effective warm remediation of Dutch pig farming stands or falls with the effective cooperation of municipalities and provinces. However, confidence in this is fragile, according to parliamentary questions from the VVD and an analysis by Abab Accountants.

The VVD group in the House of Representatives asked three parliamentary questions to Agriculture Minister Carola Schouten about the so-called flanking policy in the pig farming restructuring scheme (Srv). Have binding agreements been made with municipalities and provinces? What powers does the minister have to intervene if the procedures take too long? What costs do lengthy procedures entail?

Take responsibility
Frank Steenbreker, business advisor at Abab Accountants en Adviseurs, also asks whether municipalities and provinces are delivering what they have promised. 'They sat down at the table when the scheme was being drawn up and promised their cooperation to provide accompanying policy.'

Abab advises entrepreneurs who are considering participating in the remediation scheme, but are still awaiting accompanying policy, to sign up anyway. According to him, the entrepreneur can always decide later not to sign the agreement, if municipalities and provinces do not take their responsibility in this sufficiently.

He is convinced that this gives a stronger signal from pig farming. 'This shows the sector that it wants to participate in removing bottlenecks in terms of odor pollution, but that other parties must also deliver what they have promised to the table. I am of the opinion that the sector with interest group POV takes a constructive attitude in this.'

Schouten does not determine repurposing
Minister Schouten says he has confidence that the provinces and municipalities will comply with the agreed approach. 'It is up to the competent authorities, for example, to make decisions about rezoning. I have agreed on a facilitating approach. Municipalities and provinces have committed themselves to this.' The minister writes this in a letter to parliament with answers to questions from the VVD. 

She indicates that she is constantly talking to municipalities about their range of coaching conversations, supporting redevelopment processes and making public arrangements that link to the Srv at a decentralized level. In some provinces, support is also provided for the demolition process.

Customization difficult to estimate precisely
But the minister also indicates that customization is necessary, because of the unique circumstances in which each pig farm finds itself. 'A pig farmer must first consider whether he wants to stop with (a location of) his pig farm. For example, financial consequences, personal future and that of the family and the future prospects for the location are discussed. A pig farmer often cannot oversee all this alone. Support is needed for that," the minister writes.

Schouten indicates that pig farmers also have to make their own choices. 'Does the pig farmer want to start a new business (no intensive livestock farming) or sell the location, does the entrepreneur want to continue living at the location or not, will the agricultural land associated with the location be sold or will it be converted to a new function? Depending on the choices made by an entrepreneur and the options offered by municipalities and provinces from supporting policy, this process takes (relatively) much or little time and entails (relatively) much or little cost," said the minister. in answering parliamentary questions.

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