Overview
- The national cabinet has proposed a package that requires agriculture to cut ammonia emissions by about 23–25% by 2030 and to place 500‑metre or 1,000‑metre buffer zones around vulnerable Natura 2000 sites to restart permitting.
- Zuid-Holland has formally pushed back and will use its 'uitdaagrecht' to argue for a 250‑metre transition zone around the Nieuwkoopse Plassen based on provincial research and a Wageningen (WENR) finding that most deposition comes from sources within 250 metres.
- On Tuesday, June 30, Friesland and other provinces publicly questioned several Rijk‑designated zones and asked to negotiate tailored, evidence‑based alternatives that they say better protect local nature and rural livelihoods.
- Provinces warn the cabinet’s blanket 1,000‑metre zones would hit many more dairy farms than smaller, area‑specific zonings and raise concerns about tying new rules to phosphates rights and strict cow‑per‑hectare limits that would be hard to meet quickly.
- The dispute now moves to detailed talks and likely legal or administrative challenges between the Rijk and provinces, with the outcome determining how fast permits resume and how much scope farmers have to adapt.