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The nitrogen crisis in the Netherlands (Dutch : stikstofcrisis) is an ecological and legal crisis that has been defined as such since 2019, following a ruling by the Administrative Jurisdiction Division of the Council of State.
At the root of the crisis lie the effects of human impact on the nitrogen cycle. In the Netherlands, the soil is burdened by a very high deposition of reactive nitrogen compounds, in particular ammonia (NH3) and nitrogen oxides (NOx). Of these, ammonia poses the biggest issue. It is released to the air by animal manure. Nitrogen oxides are emitted by internal combustion engines, such as those in motor vehicles, airplanes and industry. The release of nitrogen compounds in large quantities is a form of nutrient pollution and leads to undesirable effects on the quality of soil, water, air, and nature through the process of eutrophication. [3]
In essence, the nitrogen crisis is the successor to the acid rain problem of the 1980s. Acid rain is caused by the deposition of ammonia and nitrogen oxides, but also sulfur dioxide (SO
2). From 1980 to 2020, the emission of sulfur dioxide was reduced by 80%. The emission of nitrogen compounds was also reduced by 50%. The emission of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) has been steadily decreasing ever since 1980. However, the reduction in the emission of ammonia came to a standstill around 2010, the last year of the fourth Balkenende cabinet. [3]
In 2015, the Dutch government under the second Rutte cabinet launched a new program to reduce nitrogen pollution, the Integrated Approach to Nitrogen (Dutch : Programma Aanpak Stikstof , PAS). [3]
When the nitrogen crisis came to a head in 2019, it already had a long history, both legal and ecological. The first European standards were set as early as 1991. European Union member states are obliged to comply with the Habitats Directive, which states that a 'favourable conservation status' must be aimed for in Natura 2000 areas.
In May 2017, the Council of State submitted a number of preliminary questions to the European Court of Justice, [4] which in November 2018 provided a further explanation of the relevant provisions of the Habitats Directive. On 29 May 2019, the Administrative Jurisdiction Division of the Council of State ruled on this basis that the government's use of the Integrated Approach to Nitrogen (PAS) was invalid when granting permits due to the anticipation of future reductions in nitrogen deposition. [5] As a result, the PAS could no longer be used for granting nitrogen permits in the vicinity of Natura 2000 areas. This ruling led to the immediate suspension of various projects (mainly housing, which aggravated the ongoing Dutch housing shortage), and the government had to urgently seek solutions. [6] Although nitrogen pollution had been an issue for many years, the Council of State's ruling promptly suspended an estimated 18,000 construction projects. [7]
In June 2020, the Advisory Committee on the Nitrogen Problem under former Deputy Prime Minister Johan Remkes published a report titled Niet alles kan overal ("Not Everything Is Possible Everywhere") [8] which recommended reducing nationwide emissions of NH3 and NOx by 50% compared to 2019, for a long-term solution (up to 2030). The NH3 should be reduced even further in certain areas close to natural areas.
As of July 2021, construction projects could proceed without nitrogen testing under the so-called bouwvrijstelling ("construction exemption"). However, this exemption was overturned by the Council of State in November 2022, and a "protracted nitrogen crisis" continues.
In the wake of the 2019 ruling and related government policies, a sizeable farmers' protest movement arose, which saw livestock farmers using tractors to block major Dutch roads and occupy public spaces. [9] [10] [11]
In response to these protests, the agrarian and right-wing populist political party Farmer–Citizen Movement (Dutch : BoerBurgerBeweging, BBB) was founded in October 2019. In the 2021 general election, it pledged for the creation of a "Ministry of the Countryside" (Dutch : ministerie van Platteland) located at least 100 kilometers from The Hague [12] and a removal of the ban on neonicotinoids. [13] In addition, the party calls for right-to-farm laws, which would allow for farmers to have more say on agricultural expansion matters, in response to local opposition to pig and goat farms over public health, environmental and agricultural concerns.
In 2023, the BBB won the provincial elections and became the party with the largest number of seats in the Dutch Senate following the Senate election. [14] [15]
Ammonia is an inorganic chemical compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula NH3. A stable binary hydride and the simplest pnictogen hydride, ammonia is a colourless gas with a distinctive pungent smell. Biologically, it is a common nitrogenous waste, and it contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to fertilisers. Around 70% of ammonia produced industrially is used to make fertilisers in various forms and composition, such as urea and diammonium phosphate. Ammonia in pure form is also applied directly into the soil.
Acid rain is rain or any other form of precipitation that is unusually acidic, meaning that it has elevated levels of hydrogen ions. Most water, including drinking water, has a neutral pH that exists between 6.5 and 8.5, but acid rain has a pH level lower than this and ranges from 4–5 on average. The more acidic the acid rain is, the lower its pH is. Acid rain can have harmful effects on plants, aquatic animals, and infrastructure. Acid rain is caused by emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide, which react with the water molecules in the atmosphere to produce acids.
The Haber process, also called the Haber–Bosch process, is the main industrial procedure for the production of ammonia. The German chemists Fritz Haber and Carl Bosch developed it in the first decade of the 20th century. The process converts atmospheric nitrogen (N2) to ammonia (NH3) by a reaction with hydrogen (H2) using an iron metal catalyst under high temperatures and pressures. This reaction is slightly exothermic (i.e. it releases energy), meaning that the reaction is favoured at lower temperatures and higher pressures. It decreases entropy, complicating the process. Hydrogen is produced via steam reforming, followed by an iterative closed cycle to react hydrogen with nitrogen to produce ammonia.
Urea, also called carbamide, is an organic compound with chemical formula CO(NH2)2. This amide has two amino groups joined by a carbonyl functional group. It is thus the simplest amide of carbamic acid.
A fertilizer or fertiliser is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from liming materials or other non-nutrient soil amendments. Many sources of fertilizer exist, both natural and industrially produced. For most modern agricultural practices, fertilization focuses on three main macro nutrients: nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) with occasional addition of supplements like rock flour for micronutrients. Farmers apply these fertilizers in a variety of ways: through dry or pelletized or liquid application processes, using large agricultural equipment or hand-tool methods.
The nitrogen cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by which nitrogen is converted into multiple chemical forms as it circulates among atmospheric, terrestrial, and marine ecosystems. The conversion of nitrogen can be carried out through both biological and physical processes. Important processes in the nitrogen cycle include fixation, ammonification, nitrification, and denitrification. The majority of Earth's atmosphere (78%) is atmospheric nitrogen, making it the largest source of nitrogen. However, atmospheric nitrogen has limited availability for biological use, leading to a scarcity of usable nitrogen in many types of ecosystems.
Gert-Jan Oplaat is a Dutch former politician.
Human impact on the nitrogen cycle is diverse. Agricultural and industrial nitrogen (N) inputs to the environment currently exceed inputs from natural N fixation. As a consequence of anthropogenic inputs, the global nitrogen cycle (Fig. 1) has been significantly altered over the past century. Global atmospheric nitrous oxide (N2O) mole fractions have increased from a pre-industrial value of ~270 nmol/mol to ~319 nmol/mol in 2005. Human activities account for over one-third of N2O emissions, most of which are due to the agricultural sector. This article is intended to give a brief review of the history of anthropogenic N inputs, and reported impacts of nitrogen inputs on selected terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.
The 1999 Gothenburg Protocol to Abate Acidification, Eutrophication and Ground-level Ozone is a multi-pollutant protocol designed to reduce acidification, eutrophication and ground-level ozone by setting emissions ceilings for sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds and ammonia to be met by 2010. As of August 2014, the Protocol had been ratified by 26 parties, which includes 25 states and the European Union.
Lilian Maria Johanna Sibertha Helder is a Dutch politician and former lawyer. As a member of the Party for Freedom she has been an MP since 17 June 2010, focusing on matters of the judiciary. In September 2023 she switched to the Farmer–Citizen Movement, and she has since been the party's spokesperson for justice and security.
Urine patches in cattle pastures generate large concentrations of the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide through nitrification and denitrification processes in urine-contaminated soils. Over the past few decades, the cattle population has increased more rapidly than the human population. Between the years 2000 and 2050, the cattle population is expected to increase from 1.5 billion to 2.6 billion. When large populations of cattle are packed into pastures, excessive amounts of urine soak into soils. This increases the rate at which nitrification and denitrification occur and produce nitrous oxide. Currently, nitrous oxide is one of the single most important ozone-depleting emissions and is expected to remain the largest throughout the 21st century.
Ammonia pollution is pollution by the chemical ammonia (NH3) – a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen which is a byproduct of agriculture and industry. Common forms include air pollution by the ammonia gas emitted by rotting agricultural slurry and fertilizer factories while natural sources include the burning coal mines of Jharia, the caustic Lake Natron and the guano of seabird colonies. Gaseous ammonia reacts with other pollutants in the air to form fine particles of ammonium salts, which affect human breathing. Ammonia gas can also affect the chemistry of the soil on which it settles and will, for example, degrade the conditions required by the sphagnum moss and heathers of peatland.
The Dutch farmers' protests are a series of demonstrations by Dutch livestock farmers, characterised by the use of tractors to block roads, and occupy public spaces. The protests were initially triggered in October 2019 by a proposal in parliament to halve the country's livestock in an attempt to limit agricultural pollution in the Netherlands, but protesting farmers have frequently told media that they are motivated by a perceived lack of respect for their profession by the Dutch populace, media and politicians. The protests combined several action groups and an amalgamation of larger goals, which included less government regulation for farmers, more air time for pro-farmer sentiments, and more policy to punish Shell and Tata Steel for their part in the emission crisis.
The Farmer–Citizen Movement is an agrarian and right-wing populist political party in the Netherlands. It is headquartered in Deventer, Overijssel. The current party leader is founder Caroline van der Plas, who has led it since its creation in 2019.
Caroline Ann Maria van der Plas is a Dutch journalist and politician who has served as a member of the House of Representatives since 2021. A former member of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), which she left in 2019, she is the founder and current party leader of the Farmer–Citizen Movement (BBB).
Derk Geertsz Boswijk is a Dutch politician serving as a member of the House of Representatives since the 2021 general election. A member of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), he previously held a seat in the States of Utrecht from 2015 to 2021 and chaired his party's caucus during the last two of those years.
An election to the Dutch Senate was held on 30 May 2023. The 75 members of the Senate were elected by members of the provincial councils and electoral colleges elected two months earlier in provincial and electoral college elections.
Ilona Maria Lagas-Meijer is a Dutch politician of the Farmer–Citizen Movement (BBB). She participated in the 2023 Senate election as the Farmer–Citizen Movement's lead candidate, and became the party's parliamentary leader in the Senate. Lagas joined the Farmer–Citizen Movement in 2021 after leaving the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), for which she previously served as a municipal councillor and alderwoman.
Eline C. Vedder-Monaster is a Dutch dairy farmer and politician of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA). Born in Dordrecht, she studied mechanical engineering and started running a dairy farm in Drenthe with her husband after some years at multinational Unilever.
Cor R. Pierik is a Dutch politician who has been a member of the House of Representatives on behalf of the Farmer–Citizen Movement (BBB) since 2023.
Table 5.1: Composition of nitrogen deposition (mol ha−1 year−1) in 2018
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