The Farmers' Union of Wales has launched a scathing attack on Welsh Government proposals to "gold plate" a new Good Agricultural Environmental Condition (GAEC) on buffer strips next to water courses introduced as part of the Common Agricultural Policy Health Check agreement in 2008.
The FUW believe that proposals to increase the minimum standard imposed by Europe are not backed up by scientific evidence and it feels strongly that the Welsh Government should not seek to gold plate cross-compliance Regulations and adopt a higher standard than the minimum required.
The proposals, which include an option to designate extra wide buffer zones alongside water courses, would also impose an additional level of bureaucracy on an already over-regulated industry at a time when the Welsh Government is allegedly committed to cutting red tape.
"Given the wide ranging description of 'water courses' in the Codes of Good Agricultural Practice, which includes dry ditches and takes no account of the topography or geography of the land in question, the union is concerned that taking an over cautionary approach to buffer strips could have significant economic impacts for farmers in Wales, given the number of 'water courses' in the region and indeed within individual fields," said FUW land use and parliamentary committee chairman Richard Vaughan.
"Over zealous implementation of the restrictions over and above the minimum requirements will mean that a large proportion of buffer strips in Wales would be ineffective, whilst the impact on the viability of farm businesses may be substantial.
"Apart from some discrete areas in Wales, Nitrates are not a major problem. Point source pollution is best dealt with at catchment level rather than by a blanket approach which penalises all farmers," added Mr Vaughan.
"Whilst accepting that the new rules coming into force in January 2012 are not up for negotiation, the union is concerned that the Assembly is even considering more arduous requirements to tackle so-called diffuse pollution, as opposed to dealing with the issue in a pragmatic and proactive way through targeting those areas where there is deemed to be a problem," said Mr Vaughan.
The union believes that tackling diffuse pollution through advice, awareness raising and encouraging good practise is far more productive than the use of blunt tools of cross compliance and increased regulation.