June 1, 2009

UK livestock producers win emission concession

UK pig and poultry farmers have secured a concession from Natural England, a public environmental body under the UK government, over ammonia emissions.

Under the Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control rules, about 80 pig and poultry units are facing strict reductions on ammonia emissions, said the National Farmers' Union (NFU).

Those units are close to sites protected under the Habitats Regulations, and subsequently some of those units face having to make significant investment in technology to reduce emissions, scale down production or stop production altogether.

But after lobbying by the NFU and the National Pig Association, Natural England will carry out a survey of all habitat sites to determine the extent of ammonia damage, and units will only face ammonia reduction targets where damage is found.