Poultry farmers have called for poultry litter to be excluded from the definition of slurry in the Nitrates Directive Action Programme.
UFU Poultry Committee chairman, Thomas Douglas, said poultry producers needed more clarity on the possible restrictions they could face under the proposed Department of the Environment and Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Nitrates Action Programme.
Thomas Douglas said: "We wish to see poultry litter defined as farmyard manure. It has a high dry matter content and in our opinion should not be classified as slurry.
This is a very important issue for us because if poultry litter was to be included as slurry, we would be faced with the burden of a closed period and the extra storage requirements. We want this issue clarified and poultry litter defined as a farmyard manure."
UFU poultry vice-chairman, John McClenaghan, said the poultry industry was already developing research into alternative uses for poultry litter.
He said: "The poultry industry is advancing plans to use litter for other uses. Policy makers shouldn't lumber the industry with unnecessary requirements for storage, when alternative uses for poultry litter are being developed. "Similarly, the poultry sector faces huge difficulties if individual farm phosphate balances are required. This is another proposal which we feel is completely unnecessary. The industry is working to remove phosphates from feed and this deals with the issue of reducing the input of phosphates. The idea of an individual farm phosphate balance is an example of local Government Departments trying to Gold Plate EU regulations."
