[Diggers350] Dutch Farmers Protest Dutch Gov't Landgrab to Reduce Livestock Emissions

[Mark S Brown]

The Dutch government is enacting a policy of confiscating farmland in the
Netherlands for the purpose of reducing pollutant levels such as Nitrogen
Oxide and Ammonia (predominantly emitted in large-scale intensive farming
units), with the complementary outcome for the government of creating their
own food distribution central authority. This ''pollution-reduction' policy to
cut nitrogen emissions has been signposted by the World Economic Forum as
part of the drive to bring-into-being net zero climate policy objectives.
The move is part of the 2019 Climate Act to bring greenhouse gas emissions
down by 49% by 2030. However, the way the Dutch government is bringing this
new regime into effect through the confiscation of land equates to a
mass-land grab by the Dutch State.

Dutch farmers have recently been taking to the streets in mass protests
against the measures, blokading supermarkets, distributions centres and
roads in response to government plans .with farmers are not taking it lying
down. See here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fpe7w8fttJY


Dutch Farmers Protest Plans To Reduce Livestock Numbers And Emissions Shots
were fired at a recent protest as farmers took their tractors to the
streets

By Amy Buxton <https://plantbasednews.org/author/amy-buxton/>
11th July 2022
Ref: https://plantbasednews.org/news/dutch-farmers-protest-emissions-cuts/


Police in the Netherlands responded to Dutch farmers violently protesting
government plans to slash nitrogen emissions.

Farmers rode their tractors through the province of Friesland, in the
northern Netherlands. The large machines moved to force a barricade of
police officers and vehicles out of the way. The “threatening” situation
<https://twitter.com/POL_Fryslan/status/1544434501648105480?s=20&t=JQVzRPssODx43NEhzKuadQ>
saw one tractor shot at by armed police.

The protest concluded with three arrests for attempted murder and no
injuries.
*What are Dutch farmers protesting about?*

The Dutch government recently unveiled plans to drastically reduce nitrogen
oxide emissions.

Deeming the environmental policy as an “unavoidable transition,” the
government will impose stringent restrictions on the region’s agricultural
sector. The move is part of the 2019 Climate Act to bring greenhouse gas
emissions down by 49 percent by 2030.

Pulling in €94.5 billion in exports
<https://www.government.nl/latest/news/2020/01/17/dutch-agricultural-exports-worth-%E2%82%AC94.5-billion-in-2019>
in 2019, the farming sector is a significant economic string in the
Netherlands’ bow. But it is also a major contributor to its environmental
impact.

Animal agriculture is responsible for up to 87 percent
<https://plantbasednews.org/news/environment/animal-agriculture-responsible-for-87-of-greenhouse-gas-emissions/>
of all greenhouse gas emissions. This makes reducing livestock numbers
imperative, particularly for farming-reliant nations such as the
Netherlands.

Farmers have previously attempted to reduce their operational emissions
<https://plantbasednews.org/culture/law-and-politics/the-netherlands-farmers-cow-numbers/>
in light of the “nitrogen crisis” in the region. The government now wants
to see more progress. It acknowledges the struggle ahead for agricultural
businesses as they try to align with the new plan.

“Of course, it has enormous consequences. I understand that, and it is
simply terrible,” Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Netherlands said in a
statement. “And especially if they are businesses handed down in the family
who want to proudly continue.”

The new reduction targets are ambitious. Many farms will need to produce up
to 70 percent fewer emissions. However, figures of up to 95 percent are
touted.

The Dutch government has set aside €24.3 billion to finance the realization
of the emissions targets.


*How will Farmers reduce their emissions?*

Agricultural business owners are preparing to use less fertilizer and reduce
livestock numbers
<https://plantbasednews.org/news/environment/dutch-farmers-reduce-livestock/>.
The latter could see smaller farms forced to close.

Provincial governments have one year to finalize plans for meeting their
localized reduction targets.

The Netherlands Agricultural and Horticultural Association (LTO) has called
the targets “unrealistic.” It currently represents more than 35,000
farmers, many of which are calling for large-scale demonstrations in The
Hague. Small protests have seen farmers driving their tractors in
disruptive convoys.

The Paris Agreement calls for emissions to be cut to prevent global warming
increasing by more than 1.5°C. In simple terms, this means a 45 percent
global reduction of said emissions by 2030.
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