Dutch producers fight climate change plan

Dutch farmers angered by government plans that may require them to use less fertilizer and reduce livestock blocked supermarket distribution hubs in several cities in the Netherlands in early July. 

Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport and KLM, the Dutch arm of Air France, advised travellers to use public transport, rather than cars, to reach the airport, because farmers’ activist groups also used tractors to block roads.

Several traffic jams were reported on highways in the east of the country and on ferry routes in the north. 

At the heart of the protest are targets introduced in June to reduce harmful nitrogen compounds by 2030, the latest attempt to tackle a problem that has plagued the country for years. The targets call for reducing nitrogen pollution in some areas by up to 70 per cent by 2030. 

Details of how the targets will be met will be worked out in the coming months together with provincial governments, said Christianne van der Wal, the Minister for Nature and Nitrogen, at a news conference.

However, “some of our farmers will not be able to continue their businesses as they do now,” she said.

The Netherlands is the world’s second-largest agricultural exporter after the United States. Relatively large numbers of livestock and heavy use of fertilizers, as well as traffic and construction in a densely-populated country, have led to illegally high levels of nitrogen oxides in the air and water.

Reductions are necessary in emissions of nitrogen oxides from farm animal manure and from the use of ammonia in fertilizer, the Dutch government says, estimating a 30 per cent reduction in the number of livestock is needed.

The emission reduction targets are intended to comply with rulings in 2018 by the European Court of Justice and in 2019 by the Netherlands’ Council of State that Dutch policies were failing to address the problem.

Farmers say they have been unfairly singled out and have criticized the government’s approach.

The recent protest is widely supported by farmers’ groups but not centrally organized.

Previous rounds of protests have included unruly demonstrations outside the homes of politicians and lawmakers, which drew condemnation from prime minister Mark Rutte and did not increase public support for the cause.

In 2020 the government set a national speed limit of 100 kilometres per hour in an attempt to ease emissions.

Construction projects are now routinely delayed due to difficulties obtaining licences covering emission of nitrogen compounds.