Miljø- og Fødevareudvalget 2018-19 (1. samling)
MOF Alm.del Bilag 512
Offentligt
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Derogation Report 2018
Danish Report
in accordance with the
Commission Decisions
2005/294/EC, 2008/664/EC,
2012/659/EU, 2017/847/EU,
and (C(2018) 8081)
March 2019
Ministry of Environment and Food of Denmark
Department
Slotsholmsgade 12
DK-1216 Copenhagen K
 MOF, Alm.del - 2018-19 (1. samling) - Bilag 512: Rapport til EU-Kommissionen om dansk undtagelse fra nitratdirektivet
Table of contents
1.
Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 3
2. Maps of cattle holdings, arable land and livestock units in 2017 ...................................... 5
2.1 Map of derogation holdings 2016/2017 .......................................................................................................... 5
2.2. Map of arable land 2016/2017 ........................................................................................................................ 5
2.3. Map of livestock units 2016/2017 .................................................................................................................. 5
2.4. Use of derogation ............................................................................................................................................ 5
2.5 Trends in livestock ..........................................................................................................................................11
3. Controls at farm level ..................................................................................................... 12
3.1 Control of compliance with the Danish derogation ...................................................................................... 12
3.2 Summary of inspection results 2018 ............................................................................................................. 12
3.3 Inspection of compliance within the derogation year .................................................................................. 12
3.4 Results............................................................................................................................................................. 13
3.5 General inspection of the harmony rules ...................................................................................................... 13
3.6 Control of fertilizer accounts ......................................................................................................................... 16
4. Water quality .................................................................................................................. 17
4.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................................... 18
4.2 Development in agricultural practices at the national level from 2005 to 2017 ....................................... 20
4.3 Modelled nitrate leaching for farm types and geographical areas and the impact of derogation
farms at the national level
–
2017 data ...............................................................................................................22
4.4 Development in modelled nitrate leaching in the Agricultural Catchment Monitoring Programme
1990-2017 ............................................................................................................................................................. 31
4.5 Measurements of nitrate in water leaving the root zone ..............................................................................32
4.6 The nitrogen flow to surface water in agricultural catchments ...................................................................36
5. Reinforced monitoring in areas characterized by sandy soils ....................................... 40
5.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 40
5.2 Method ........................................................................................................................................................... 40
5.3 Characterization of monitoring stations and data analysis .........................................................................43
5.4 Results and Discussion ..................................................................................................................................44
6. Indicator system for application of phosphorus in Denmark in 2017 .............................50
6.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................50
6.2 Results.............................................................................................................................................................50
7.
8.
Targeted catch crops scheme .......................................................................................... 52
Conclusions .................................................................................................................... 53
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1. Introduction
With Commission Decisions 2005/294/EC, 2008/664/EC, 2012/659/EU, 2017/847/EU, and (C(2018)
8081), Danish cattle holdings are allowed to derogate from the general rules in the Nitrates Directive
(91/676/EEC).
The aim of this report is to present maps showing the percentage of farms and percentage of agricultural land
encompassed by the derogation in each Danish municipality for the planning period 2016/2017.
Furthermore, compliance control results for the Danish derogation farms are reported for 2016/2017, and
monitoring results for 2016/2017 are included.
This report does not include monitoring results for farms applying the derogation in 2016/2017 according to
derogation decision 2017/847/EU. Monitoring results for that period will be included in the next monitoring
report.
Decision 2017/847/EU is the relevant decision for the data reported in this report. According to this decision,
cattle holdings could apply for authorisation to apply livestock manure corresponding to up to 2.3 livestock
units (LU
1
) per hectare per year (corresponding to 230 kg N/ha), if more than 80 per cent of the area
available for manure application was cultivated with beets, grass or grass catch crops. Furthermore,
derogation holdings have to comply with several other conditions laid down in the decision.
According to decision 2017/847/EU, the Danish authorities shall submit the following information to the
Commission for the derogation period 2016/2017:
According to Article 7 (1) and 9 (a): maps, showing the percentage of cattle farms, percentage of
livestock and percentage of agricultural land covered by the derogation for each municipality of
Denmark.
According to Article 9 (g), an evaluation of the implementation of the derogation conditions, on the
basis of controls at farm level and information on non-compliant farms, based on the results of the
administrative and field inspections.
According to Article 9 (b, c, e), the results on ground and surface water monitoring as regards nitrate
and phosphate, including information on water quality trends as well as the impact of derogation on
water quality. Further results of model-based calculations from farms benefiting from an individual
derogation.
According to Article 9 (d and f), the results of the surveys on local land use, crop rotations and
agricultural practices including tables showing the percentage of agricultural land under derogation
covered by clover or alfalfa in grassland and by barley/pea, undersown with grass.
The latest derogation decision (C(2018) 8081) requires according to article 12 (h), to include trends in
livestock numbers and manure production for each livestock category in Denmark and in derogation farms.
Based on register data, it is already now possible to provide the data and it is included in this report.
Moreover, the latest derogation decision (C(2018) 8081) requires according to Articles 10 (2) and 12 (b),
reporting of water quality data from reinforced monitoring on sandy soils and in an area, where at least 3% of
all derogation farms are located. The first monitoring data is presented in this report.
1
One livestock unit is defined as 100 kg nitrogen in the livestock manure ex. storage.
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Various Danish authorities and institutions have contributed to this report, edited by the Ministry of
Environment and Food of Denmark. The respective authors, and hence responsible institutions for the
different chapters, can be found under the heading to the respective chapters.
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2. Maps of cattle holdings, arable land and livestock units in 2017
Lars Paulsen and Lene Kragh Møller, The Danish Agricultural Agency, Ministry of Environment and Food
of Denmark, December 2018
For the planning period 2016/2017, the Danish Agricultural Agency received 35,059 fertilizer accounts
containing key figures on the use of nitrogen (commercial fertilizer and livestock manure). The accounts were
registered and reviewed. The maps (Figure 2.1 - Figure 2.3) are based on the number of agricultural holdings,
number of livestock units (LU) and arable land used by derogation farms in 2016/2017. The fertilizer
accounting year runs from 1
st
of August to 31
st
of July. Accounts for 2016/2017 were to be submitted to the
Danish Agricultural Agency no later than 31
st
of March 2018.
In the fertilizer account the farmer states whether the derogation was used. This means that the individual
farmer needs to apply for the use of derogation when the farmer submits the fertilizer quota and catch crops
plan (at the latest 21
st
of April each year). The information about the application is automatically transferred
to the fertilizer accounting system. The maps of cattle holdings, arable land and livestock units are based on
the data reported by the farmers.
2.1
Map of derogation holdings 2016/2017
The map (Figure 2.1) shows derogation holdings in percentage of the total number of agricultural holdings
registered in each respective Danish municipality.
In 2016/2017, 1,378 derogation holdings were encompassed by the derogation. This corresponds to 3.9 % of
all registered fertilizer accounts. The applied amount of manure on these farms ranged from 170 to 230 kg N
per hectare per year. If the production of manure on a derogation farm corresponds to more than 230 kg N
per hectare, the farmer is obliged to deliver the excess manure to one or more contractual partner-farmers.
2.2. Map of arable land 2016/2017
The map (Figure 2.2) shows the share of arable land on derogation holdings in relation to the total
agricultural area in each Danish municipality.
In 2016/2017 the arable land on cattle holdings encompassed by the derogation was 205,874 hectare at
national scale. This corresponded to 8.4 % of the registered area used for agriculture in Denmark.
2.3. Map of livestock units 2016/2017
The map (Figure 2.3) shows the number of livestock units on derogation holdings as a share of the total
number of livestock units in each Danish municipality.
In 2016/2017, the number of livestock units on cattle holdings encompassed by the derogation was 439,114
LUs in total. This corresponded to 19.3 % of all registered livestock units in Denmark.
2.4. Use of derogation
During the first three years where the derogation was used, i.e. 2002/2003, 2003/2004 and 2004/2005, an
increase in the use of the derogation was registered both regarding the number of farms, the number of
hectares and the number of livestock units (Table 2.1). This tendency was broken in 2005/2006, where a
decrease was observed for all three measured parameters and the decreasing trend continued until the period
2008/2009. Between 2009/2010 and 2015/2016 an overall increase in the agricultural area using the
derogation was observed, whereas the number of farms remained at a more constant level. The general trend
of Danish farms becoming bigger is reflected in these numbers. Compared to the previous reporting period,
in 2016/2017 there has been a minor decrease in the number of farms, the number of hectares and the
number of livestock unit encompassed by the derogation.
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Table 2.1: Development in use of the derogation for number of farms, agricultural area and livestock
units (LU) from 2002/2003 until 2016/2017.
Year
2002/2003
2003/2004
2004/2005
2005/2006
2006/2007
2007/2008
2008/2009
2009/2010
2010/2011
2011/2012
2012/2013
2013/2014
2014/2015
2015/2016
2016/2017
Number of
derogation
farms
1,845
1,927
2,331
1,779
1,610
1,296
1,115
1,507
1,607
1,652
1,481
1,482
1,500
1,466
1,378
Share of
total
farms (%)
4.0
4.0
5.0
3.4
3.2
2.8
2.4
3.3
3.9
4.0
3.7
3.8
4.0
4.2
3.9
Area of
derogation
(ha)
123,068
128,523
134,780
115,336
111,845
92,282
90,647
134,698
164,353
175,783
162,176
189,495
205,165
210,061
205,874
Share of
total Area
(%)
5.0
5.0
5.0
4.2
4.0
3.9
3.6
6.1
7.4
7.1
6.7
7.7
8.2
8.6
8.4
Number of
LUs
213,617
225,586
277,330
220,839
211,765
186,313
176,588
276,765
341,781
365,887
334,508
397,014
425,102
443,134
439,114
Share of
total LUs
(%)
10.6
10.6
12.9
10.3
9.5
8.3
8.2
11.9
14.1
15.5
14.5
17.1
18.6
19.4
19.3
The livestock density on derogation farms has remained at an approximately constant level, compared to the
periods 2009/2010-2016/2017 (Table 2.2). The average number of livestock units per farm has increased
over the years and this trend continued in 2016/2017.
By comparison, a total of 11,513 Danish agricultural holdings had cattle as livestock in 2016/2017. These
holdings housed in total 1,186,790 LUs and covered an agricultural area of 922,596 ha. This gave an average
of 103.1 LUs per cattle holding and an average livestock density of 1.29 LU/ha on all cattle Danish farms.
Consequently, approximately 12.0 % of all cattle farms were derogation farms in 2016/2017, and the
derogation (cattle) farms housed 37.0 % of all cattle-LUs in Denmark, covering 22.3 % of the total Danish
cattle farm area.
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Table 2.2: Average number of spread livestock units (LU) per holding and per hectare under the
derogation
2
Year
2002/2003
2003/2004
2004/2005
2005/2006
2006/2007
2007/2008
2008/2009
2009/2010
2010/2011
2011/2012
2012/2013
2013/2014
2014/2015
2015/2016
2016/2017
Average stocking size
(LU/holding)
115.78
117.07
118.97
124.14
131.53
143.76
158.37
183.65
212.68
221.48
225.86
267.89
283.40
302.27
318.66
Average livestock density
(LU/ha)
1.74
1.76
2.06
1.91
1.89
2.02
1.95
2.05
2.08
2.08
2.06
2.10
2.07
2.11
2.13
The maps (Figure 2.1 - Figure 2.3) illustrate that derogation cattle holdings are concentrated in the western
parts of Jutland. A few holdings are located on Zealand and even fewer on Funen and the island of Bornholm.
The one holding located in Copenhagen was taken over by a
mortgage credit institution but has its
production facilities in Jutland and on Funen.
2
“spread LU” is the term used to describe the amount of livestock manure, which is being applied to agricultural land
within the farm, as this amount can be different from the amount of livestock manure produced at farm level due to im-
or export of livestock manure from/to other farms. 1 LU corresponds to 100 kg manure-N (ex storage) in the Danish
system.
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Figure 2.1: Derogation holdings in percent of total number of agricultural holdings in Denmark in
2016/2017. Location of holdings is determined by address of the owner. One derogation holding is
located in Copenhagen, because it was taken over by a mortgage credit institute whereas its production
facilities are in Jutland and on Funen.
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Figure 2.2: Agricultural land encompassed by the derogation in 2016/2017 in percent of the total
agricultural area in Denmark. Location of holdings is determined by address of the owner. One
derogation holding is located in Copenhagen, because it was taken over by a mortgage credit institute
whereas its production facilities are in Jutland and on Funen.
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Figure 2.3: Livestock units spread on derogation farms in percent of total livestock units in 2016/2017 in
Denmark. Location of holdings is determined by address of the owner. One derogation holding is
located in Copenhagen, because it was taken over by a mortgage credit institute whereas its production
facilities are in Jutland and on Funen.
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2.5 Trends in livestock
According to decision 2017/847/EU, the Danish authorities shall submit information about trends in
livestock numbers and manure production for each livestock category in Denmark and in derogation farms
according to Article 12 (h). All numbers have been brought to a round number in order to have a clearer
picture.
The trends in livestock numbers (i.e. number of herds ) and manure production (i.e. number of LUs
4
) for
each livestock category and in derogation farms can be derived from the data shown in table 2.3 From the
planning period 2014/2015 to 2016/2017, the number of herds and LUs are decreasing for each livestock
category - except for cattle, where the number of LUs was highest in 2015/16. The total number of livestock
units has decreased by ca. 0.4 % in between the planning periods of 2014/2015 and 2016/2017.
Table 2.3: Number of Danish herds of livestock and of LUs per livestock category, rounded to the closest
unit of 100
3
Livestock
category
Year
2014/2015
No. herds
No. LUs
2015/2016
No. herds
No. LUs
2016/2017
No. herds
No. LUs
Cattle
total
Hereof
derogation
5
cattle
Pigs
Fur and
poultry
Sheep and
goats
Others
Total
12,300
1,164,700
11,800
1,193,400
11,500
1,186,800
1,500
425,100
1,500
443,100
1,400
439,100
4,100
905,300
3,900
881,300
3,600
883,700
2,000
190,500
2,000
178,000
2,100
183,000
2,400
12,200
2,300
10,500
2,200
10,600
6,100
19,100
5,800
18,800
5,600
18,100
26,900
2,291,800
25,800
2,282,000
25,000
2,282,200
The total number of herds does not coincide with total number of holdings in Denmark. A herd includes only one type
of livestock and some holdings keep more than one herd, ex. cattle and pigs.
4
One livestock unit is defined as 100 kg nitrogen in the livestock manure ex. storage.
5
The amount of derogation cattle herds and LUs are a part of “cattle total” and, thus, is not included in the
summarization of herds
and LUs in “total”.
3
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3. Controls at farm level
Lars Paulsen and Lene Kragh Møller, The Danish Agricultural Agency, Ministry of Environment and Food
of Denmark, December 2018
3.1 Control of compliance with the Danish derogation
According to Article 12 of Commission Decision 2017/847/EU, Denmark must submit a concise report on the
evaluation practice, i.e. control at farm level, to the Commission every year.
The control of compliance with the Commission Decision 2017/847/EU follows two strategies:
1. Inspection of compliance with farm management, which is carried out during the year the farmer
uses the derogation. This can include field inspections, when necessary.
2. Control of the amount of livestock manure applied per hectare per year (control of compliance with
the harmony rules), which is carried out after the derogation year has ended. This control is carried
out in two ways: 1) as an inspection of all parameters of the production at the farm and 2) as an
administrative control of submitted fertilizer accounts.
3.2 Summary of inspection results 2018
Compliance with management conditions:
Inspection at the farm: 90 inspections were carried out. 87 holdings complied with the derogation
management conditions, 3 holdings got a remark in 2018.
Compliance with the harmony rules for holdings using the derogation:
Inspection at the farm: 28 inspections were carried out. 24 holdings complied with the specific rules
for derogation holdings. Two holdings got a fine and two holdings are still under investigation.
Administrative control of the submitted fertilizer accounts: 61 inspections were carried out, out of
which 46 holdings complied with the rules. 6 holdings got a remark and 9 holdings are still under
investigation.
3.3 Inspection of compliance within the derogation year
The Danish Agricultural Agency has inspected the fulfilment of the Danish derogation conditions on
derogation holdings from 2002/2003 through 2017/2018. The farmers are required to fulfil certain
conditions in order to use the derogation. Some conditions have to be checked on site at the farm (physical
inspection), for example certain ploughing conditions, which are checked in January and February.
During the inspection at the farm the inspector asks the following questions:
1. Does the farm have a yearly production of nitrogen in livestock manure above 300 kg of which at
least 2/3 are from cattle (2/3 of the livestock units), i.e. is the farm mainly a cattle holding?
2. Has a plan been made for crops grown in the actual planning period?
3. Has the manager stated that the farm intends to comply with the 230 kg nitrogen per hectare per
year (2.3 LU/ha) derogation in the crop rotation plan?
4. Does the plan contain leguminous crops, e.g. red and white clover?
5. Has a declaration about (omitted) manure application been made?
6. Does the plan include ploughing grassland or grass catch crops in the planning period?
7.
If the answer is “yes” in question 6: Have the fields already
been ploughed by the time of inspection?
The inspection is based on 1) an interview with the farmer, 2) an inspection of the farms crop rotation plan
for the previous and coming growing season and 3) a visual inspection of fields designated for ploughing.
At the inspection, the inspector draws up a report, which includes answers to the abovementioned questions.
At the end of the inspection the farmer is informed whether the holding is allowed to apply manure
corresponding to 230 kg N/ha (2.3 LU/ha), i.e. whether the derogation can be used or not. If the holding is
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not complying with the derogation conditions, the holding is only allowed to apply livestock manure up to
170 kg N/ha. In this case the farmer has to find other legal means of disposing the surplus manure produced
on the farm.
If a farmer informs the inspector that the derogation will not be used, the field inspection is not carried out.
An administrative control of the farm is carried out instead by the time the fertilizer account has been
submitted. This control is carried out to secure that no more than 170 kg N/ha was applied.
The inspection report is submitted by the inspector to the headquarters of the Danish Agricultural Agency for
possible further administrative inspection where the data are verified. Additional remarks made by the
inspector, if any, are examined. This includes a process where the parties of interest are allowed to make
statements on the case if an infringement is discovered.
3.4 Results
From 1 January until 1 March 2018 the Danish Agricultural Agency carried out 91 inspections on cattle
holdings to inspect whether the conditions requirements were met. The control refers to the fertilizer
accounts of the year 2017/2018. Table 3.1 shows the results of the inspection for the last 15 years. Only very
few remarks have been given and in general a good compliance with the rules has been noted.
Table 3.1: Development of results of on-site inspection of compliance within the derogation years during
winter.
Control
planning
6
period
2003/2004
2004/2005
2005/2006
2006/2007
2007/2008
2008/2009
2009/2010
2010/2011
2011/2012
2012/2013
2013/2014
2014/2015
2015/2016
2016/2017
2017/2018
Total number of
inspections
35
46
50
50
54
47
51
50
54
49
47
49
48
49
90
Inspections without
remarks
29
46
49
49
54
46
49
50
52
49
46
49
48
48
87
Inspections with
remarks
6
0
1
1
0
1
2
0
2
0
1
0
0
1
3
3.5 General inspection of the harmony rules
Harmony rules
Control of the harmony rules (i.e. the amount of livestock manure applied per hectare per year) on
derogation farms is carried out after the derogation year has ended. This control is carried out within the
general inspection of the Danish harmony rules. The inspector visits the farm to inspect the production,
6
The respective controls during the planning period 2017/2018, which have been performed in January and February
2018 are related to the fact that the farmer has made use of the derogation in the previous planning period, i.e.
2016/2017. This applies also to all previous control years.
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based on various production and fertilizer account documents. Violation of the harmony rules is sanctioned.
For minor violations the farmer is issued a warning. For more severe violations the farmer is fined. Farmers
that receive a warning or a fine are reported for not complying with the cross compliance criteria.
Concerning the year 2015/2016, 379 livestock holdings (including derogation farms) have been inspected for
violation of the harmony rules. Holdings are automatically selected for inspection, based on a previously
agreed set of “risk criteria”. The Danish Agricultural Agency has therefore no direct influence on how many
derogation holdings are selected for “harmony rules inspection”. Of the selected holdings 7.4 % (28 holdings)
were derogation holdings. Out of these derogation controls, 85.7 % (24 holdings) were closed without
remarks. Two holdings (7.1 %) got a fine (Table 3.2). One farmer had spread more nitrogen per hectare than
permitted. One farmer had spread more LUs per hectare than allowed. Two holdings (7.1%) are still under
investigation (Table 3.2). Of these, one farmer had spread more nitrogen from livestock manure per hectare
than permitted, and one farmer had spread more nitrogen from livestock manure per hectare and also had
more LUs per hectare than permitted.
Table 3.2 Results of inspection of compliance with the harmony rules for farms using the derogation.
Control year
Total number
of inspections
65
27
32
27
37
52
43
29
30
28
2006/2007
2007/2008
2008/2009
2009/2010
2010/2011
2011/2012
2012/2013
2013/2014
2014/2015
2015/2016
Inspections
without
remarks
59
22
26
24
35
50
40
27
29
24
Inspections
with minor
violations
0
2
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
Inspections
with fines
5
2
5
2
0
2
3
1
0
2
Inspections
still under
investigation
1
1
0
0
2
0
0
1
1
2
Soil analysis
If the derogation is used for four consecutive years, the farmer must provide a soil analysis where
phosphorous and nitrogen levels in the soil are examined. One sample per five hectares must be provided.
In Denmark the soil analysis for phosphorus (the
”P-tal”) indicates the soil’s phosphorus status and hence
approximates phosphorus in the soil available for uptake by the crop. Internationally the soil analysis is
referred to as “Olsen-P”. Olsen-P
is often expressed in mg P per kg soil. In Denmark however,
the “P-tal” is
expressed in mg P per 100 g soil. Olsen-P in Danish agricultural soil is in average around 40 mg P per kg soil
(P-tal = 4.0). Only a part of the inorganic phosphorus available for the crop is extracted from the soil sample,
when the phosphorus status is determined. This extractable part accounts for approximately 5 to 10 per cent
of the total phosphorous content of the soil. A P-tal between 2 and 4 is generally accepted as a sufficient level
for most crops and 2-2.5 is the lower critical soil P level. A P-tal above 6 is considered very high.
The N-total analysis is used to determine the amount of extra fertilizer to be added to meet the nutrient
demand of the crop. The total soil N content (N-total) describes the N pool in the soil which potentially is
available to the crops as a result of slow mineralization. In Denmark, depending on the C/N ratio in the soil,
the standard N-total is 0.13 %. The farmer cannot expect any N-supply from mineralization, if the level of
0.13 % N-total is found. If the value is above 0.22 %, the level is high and expected mineralization is
(accounted for with) 40 kg N in maize and cereals per hectare. The N-total standard for grass fields is 0.18-
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0.22 %, and if the value is above 0.22 %, the expected mineralization is (accounted for with) 10 kg N per
hectare.
Results of soil analyses from derogation farms
The inspection of derogation farms for 2015/2016 showed that 39.3 % used the derogation for the fourth
consecutive year. These 11 holdings were obliged to provide soil analysis. No holdings got a remark regarding
soil analysis.
The sampling and analyses shall be carried out at least once every three years and from 2012/2013 at least
once every four years. The results of the development of compliance with the requirement of soil analysis are
shown in table 3.3.
Table 3.3: Development of results of inspection of compliance with the soil analysis requirement.
Control year
Number of inspections
with need for soil
analysis
74
18
39
16
22
11
14
35
30
15
22
11
Inspections
without remarks
Inspections
with remarks/still
under investigation
3
2
5
4
4
2
1
0
3
1
1
0
2004/2005
2005/2006
2006/2007
2007/2008
2008/2009
2009/2010
2010/2011
2011/2012
2012/2013
2013/2014
2014/2015
2014/2015
2015/2016
71
16
34
12
18
9
13
35
27
14
21
11
The results of the soil analyses for phosphorus and nitrogen on derogation farms are shown in Table 3.4.
Table 3.4: Phosphorus
(“P-tal” after Olsen-P-extraction)
and nitrogen levels in soil analyses, given as
average of all inspected holdings (n=11 for P and n=11 for N in 2015/2016) and with the lowest and
highest average values at holding scale, respectively.
Year
P tal
(mg P/100 g
soil)
N-total
(%)
N in grass
(%)
Average
Minimum
Maximum
Average
Minimum
Maximum
Average
Minimum
Maximum
2011/2012
4.36
2.00
6.40
0.60
0.11
2.39
0.36
0.01
1.10
2012/2013
4.60
2.90
6.10
0.33
0.12
1.71
0.24
0.17
0.35
2013/2014
4.33
2.90
8.40
0.25
0.15
0.41
0.48
0.16
2.00
2014/2015
4.60
2.87
6.08
0.25
0.13
0.58
0.24
0.16
0.51
2015/2016
4.62
3.10
6.14
0.23
0.13
0.41
0.24
0.17
0.33
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2041207_0016.png
3.6 Control of fertilizer accounts
Each year the farmers submit a fertilizer account to the Danish Agricultural Agency. The accounts include
key data on:
total arable land on the farm
arable land available for application of livestock manure
data on catch crops
type and number of livestock (LU)
production of livestock manure (kg N)
usage of livestock manure including manure from contractors
usage of fertilizers and organic matter other than livestock manure
the farm’s nitrogen quota
information on whether the farmer has used the derogation or not
For the year 2015/2016, 774 (2.2 %) of the submitted fertilizer accounts were subject to administrative
inspection. 195 fertilizer accounts remains to be investigated. The data was verified and the parties of interest
were allowed to comment their cases. The accounts were selected based on different risk criteria. In
2015/2016, 61 (7.9 %) derogation holdings were selected for more thorough control. The holdings were asked
to submit their updated and valid fertilization plan and to state their manure application. It was checked
whether the crop rotation plan included at least 80 % crops with high N-uptake and long growing season as
well as whether leguminous plants were included. If the derogation was used for four consecutive years, the
farmer also had to submit the results of the soil analysis. The share of cattle- and other animal-LU on the
farm was also controlled.
Results
Out of the 61 harmony controls, 46 holdings (75.4 %) were closed without remarks. 6 holdings (9.8 %) got
remarks and 9 (14.8 %) inspections are still under investigation (Table 3.5).
Table 3.5: Results of administrative inspection of compliance with the harmony rules of farms using the
derogation.
Control year
Number of
inspections
38
68
40
62
34
62
61
Inspections without
remarks
34
68
39
58
24
30
46
Inspections
with remarks
0
0
1
1
4
4
6
2009/2010
2010/2011
2011/2012
2012/2013
2013/2014
2014/2015
2015/2016
Inspections
still under
investigation
-
-
-
3
6
28
9
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4. Water quality
Gitte Blicher-Mathiesen, Jonas Rolighed, Helle Holm and Tina Houlborg, Department of Bioscience,
Aarhus University,
February 2019
With Commission Decisions 2005/294/EC, 2008/664/EC, 2012/659/EU and 2017/2891/EC, Danish cattle
holdings are permitted to derogate from the general rules in the Nitrates Directive (91/676/EEC). Cattle
holdings encompassed by derogation shall cover 80% or more of the acreage available for manure application
by cultivated crops having high nitrogen uptake and a long growing season.
According to Article 10(1), Article 10(2), Article 10(3), and Article 10(4) of Commission Decision
2017/2891/EC, Denmark shall each year
deliver maps at municipality level, showing the percentage of farms, the percentage of the livestock
and the percentage of agricultural land with derogation.
provide continuous data about crop rotations and agricultural practices from farms with derogation.
provide continuous analysis of level and trends in nitrate and phosphorus concentrations in root
zone water, surface waters and groundwater within the framework of the agricultural national
monitoring programme on sandy and loamy soils for farms under both derogation and non-
derogation conditions.
quantify the percentages of the land under derogation which is covered by: (a) clover or alfalfa in
grassland; (b) barley and pea undersown with grass.
According to Article 10(2) the monitoring sites shall be representative of the main soil types, the prevalent
fertilisation practices and the main crops. Reinforced monitoring shall be conducted in agricultural
catchments on sandy soils. In addition, nitrate concentrations in surface and groundwater shall be monitored
in at least 3% of all farms benefiting from authorisation of derogation.
The competent authorities shall carry out surveys and continuous nutrient analyses in the agricultural
catchment national monitoring programme and shall provide data on local land use, crop rotations and
agricultural practices on cattle farms benefiting from an authorisation
In Article 10(3), it is stated that competent authorities shall carry out surveys and continuous nutrient
analyses in the agricultural catchment within the framework of the national monitoring programme and
provide data on local land use, crop rotations and agricultural practices on cattle farms benefiting from an
authorisation of derogation.
Moreover, information and data collected from nutrient analyses and from monitoring shall be used for
model-based calculations of nitrogen and phosphorus losses from cattle farms benefitting from an
authorisation of derogation
In Article 10(4) it is stated as mentioned before, that that competent authorities shall quantify the
percentages of the land under derogation which is covered by: (a) clover or alfalfa in grassland and (b) barley
and pea undersown with grass.
This chapter covers the requested reporting in Article 12 (b-f) on:
the results of ground and surface water monitoring as regards nitrate and phosphorus
concentrations, including information on water quality trends, for farms under both derogation and
non-derogation conditions, as well as the impact of derogation on water quality, as referred to in
Article 10(2).
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the results of soil monitoring as regards nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations in the root zone
water, for farms under both derogation and non-derogation conditions, as referred to in Article
10(2).
results of the surveys on local land use, crop rotations and agricultural practices, as referred to in
Article 10(3).
results of model-based calculations of the magnitude of nitrogen and phosphorus losses from farms
benefitting from an authorisation of derogation, as referred to in Article 10(3).
tables showing the percentage of agricultural land under derogation covered by clover or alfalfa in
grassland and by barley/pea undersown with grass, as referred to in Article 10(4).
So far, model-based calculations of phosphorus losses from farms benefitting from an authorisation of
derogation are not available, but measured Phosphorus concentration in root zone water on fields with
average application of less and more than 170 kg organic N per hectare are presented.
As data in this chapter are from the year 2017, the Commission Decision 2017/2891/EC covers this period.
4.1 Introduction
Since the late 1980s, Denmark has yielded a comprehensive and efficient effort to improve the environmental
state of groundwater and surface water by lowering nitrate concentrations, especially through reductions in
nitrate leaching from agricultural sources. The first Action Plan on the Aquatic Environment was adopted in
1987 and has since then been followed by subsequent action programmes to ensure that sufficient efforts are
made to reduce the loss of nitrogen and phosphorus to the aquatic environment.
In 1998, the Action Plan on the Aquatic Environment (APAE) II was accepted by the EU Commission as the
Danish Nitrate Action Plan implementing the Nitrates Directive (1998-2003). In 2003, a final evaluation of
Action Plan II was performed. The results showed a 48% reduction of the nitrate leaching from the
agricultural sector, thus fulfilling the reduction target set in 1987. In the 5-year period 2001-2005, the total
flow-normalised nitrogen load to marine waters ranged within the interval 62,000 to 70,000 t N.
In the subsequent action plans; the Green Growth Agreement from 2009, the first and the second River
Basin Management Plan from 2014 and 2016. As well as the Food and Agricultural Agreement in December
2015, further mitigation measures and reduction targets for the N load to marine areas were suggested in
order to fulfil the targets of the Water Framework Directive.
In 2015, Denmark implemented the EU Greening component under CAP direct payments (REG EU
1307/2013), implying that at least 5% of the arable land of farm holdings shall be appointed an ecological
focus area with a greening element such as, for instance set-aside, catch crops etc.
Establishment of an obligatory buffer zone approximately 10 m from the edge of open streams and lakes
larger than 100 m
2
was implemented in 2014. In these buffer zones, application of fertilizer is prohibited and
soil cultivation must not take place. The area with buffer zones was adjusted from 50,000 ha to 25,000 ha in
2014, and from the beginning of 2016 the additional buffer zones are no longer mandatory and restricted to 2
m buffer zones along target streams and lakes larger than 100 m
2
, amounting to approximately 6,000 ha.
The Political Agreement on Food and Agricultural Package from December 2015 includes a diverse package
of measures aimed to change the environmental regulation of the agricultural sector. The first part of this
political agreement was implemented as from 2016.
In 2016, farmers were allowed to use more fertilizer. According to the APAE II agreement, farmers were
restricted in the application of fertilizer at a level that was lower than the economical optimum. This measure
in APAE II was set to reduce the fertilizer application of nitrogen to 10% below this optimum. This rule was
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regulated so that the total national nitrogen quota was set to a fixed level but with the possibility of an
adjustment relative to changes in crop cover. This adjustment made sense as crops having a high application
standard also have a higher nitrogen uptake. If crops such as grass increase in cover, then the fertilizer
application and N quota will increase as well. However, due to the suspension of set-aside in 2008, higher
yields and increases in prices of cereals and proteins, the gap between the economic optimum and the
national N quota increased, especially after 2008, amounting to 18% in 2015.
According to the Political Agreement on Food and Agricultural Package, which was implemented in 2016,
extra fertilizer amounted to 2/3 of the gap between the economic optimum and the reduced N quota, and in
2017 famers were allowed to apply nitrogen up to the economic optimum level. Corrected for organic
farming, i.e. farming without use of inorganic fertilizer, the potential extra consumption was estimated to
48,200 t N and 73,000 t N in 2016 and 2017, respectively (Jensen et al., 2015). Additional cover of catch
crops and the greening element, for instance more catch crops and set-aside, were, among other measures
introduced to counteract the potential increase in leaching due to the extra application of fertilizer in 2016.
Additionally, targeted catch crops of 145,000 ha were implemented in 2017 to counteract the potential
increase in leaching due to the extra application of fertilizer in 2017. The targeted catch crops scheme was
introduced to ensure that the status of coastal waters and groundwater does not deteriorate. Therefore,
targeted catch crops are established in very small catchments where reduction of nitrogen is needed.
Applicants for targeted catch crops could be all farmers who either own or lease such small catchments for
cultivation.
The second River Basin Management Plans (RBMPII) were adopted in June 2016, proposing schemes for
implementation of mitigation measures, such as re-establishment of riparian areas, construction of wetlands,
set-aside of organic soils, afforestation and adjustment of greening elements, in order to obtain an annual
reduction in the marine N load of 6,900 t N in the period 2015-2021. However, the actual decision on the
which measures to initiate to reach an annual reduction of 6,200 t N has been postponed to after 2021.
The N load to marine waters has been reduced stepwise along with the successful implementation of
measures for reduction of nitrogen leaching from point sources and agriculture. Approximately half of the
Danish land area lies within catchments equipped with stream water gauging statins, where the N load to
marine areas is regularly measured (Kronvang et al., 2008). The nitrogen load for ungauged catchments has
been modelled using an empirical model (Windolf et al., 2011) showing that the annual load to marine waters
varied between 55,000 and 59,000 t N, yielding an average of 57,000 t N for the five years (2010-2014),
which was used as reference level in the RBMPII (SVANA, 2016).
The regulation and effects described in this chapter cover the period until and including 2017.
The remaining part of this chapter is divided into three parts:
First, the general development in agricultural practices at national level is presented for the period 2005-
2017. This analysis is based on national register datasets from the Ministry of Environment and Food
(previously part of the Ministry of Agriculture), i.e. the single payment register and the fertilizer accounts.
Second, modelled nitrate leaching, including crop distribution and nitrogen balances, is presented for various
farm types and geographical areas, and the impact of derogation farms is analysed based on a dataset derived
by linking data from the single payment register, including data on the crops on each field comprised by the
holdings, and the fertilizer accounts. Both datasets cover agriculture in the year 2017.
Third, measurements of water quality from the National Monitoring Programme are presented for the period
1990/91-2016/17, with particular reference to the Agricultural Catchment Monitoring Programme (Blicher-
Mathiesen et al., 2019). This section includes:
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Modelling of nitrate leaching in the monitoring catchments
Measurements of nitrate in water leaving the root zone, including fields receiving more than 170 kg
N ha
-1
in organic manure
Nitrogen in surface water, draining from agricultural catchments.
Modelling of nitrate leaching in this report is carried out by means of the latest version of the empirical
model N-LES (version 4) from 2008 (Kristensen et al., 2008). This model is partly based on data from the
Agricultural Catchment Monitoring Programme. The model requires input data for agricultural practises (N
fertilization, cropping system), soil data and water percolation from the root zone. Percolation is calculated
using the Daisy model and a standard climate from a 10 km grid net (Danish Meteorological Institute),
representing weather measurements from 1990-2010. The climate dataset contains dynamic correction
factors for rainfall (Refsgaard et al., 2011). Thus, modelled nitrate leaching represents the leaching in a
standardised climate (water percolation). In contrast, all measurements from the Agricultural Catchment
Monitoring represent nitrate leaching under the actual climatic conditions.
4.2 Development in agricultural practices at the national level from 2005 to 2017
Crop distribution
The development in crop distribution for 2005-2017 was analysed on the basis of the single payment
registration. Figure 4.1 presents the results for cash crops, fodder crops and non-cultivated areas. The year
2005 was the first year with single payment, and it was anticipated that the reporting of areas for this first
year would be overestimated. Hereafter, the total reported agricultural area, including set-aside, decreased
from approximately 2,757,000 ha in 2006 to 2,600,000 ha in 2017.
The decrease in agricultural area of about 13,000 ha per year is due to road construction, afforestation,
urbanisation etc. During the years 2006-07, set-aside comprised about 160,000 ha. As from 2008 the set-
aside obligation was suspended, and in 2008 and 2009 set-aside areas were converted to cash crop, fodder
crops and nature-like areas. Set-aside covered between 23,000 and 29,000 ha in the period 2015-2017, as set-
aside is an element in the Danish implementation of the EU Greening. The area with cash crops and fodder
crops has decreased slightly since 2012.
Catch crops
In Action Plan III, the requirement for growing catch crops was carried over from the former Action Plan,
stipulating that farmers in 2005-2009 should grow catch crops on at least 6% of the potential catch crop area
if they applied less than 80 kg organic manure N ha
-1
and on 10% of the area if they applied more than 80 kg
organic manure N ha
-1
. From 2010, an additional catch crop area, equivalent to an extra 4% of the potential
catch crop area, was implemented, yielding a total requirement of growing of catch crops of 10% or 14%,
respectively. In 2008, the requirement for growing catch crops was raised to counterbalance the effects of the
set-aside suspension.
During this period (2005-2010), farmers growing winter crops (wheat, rye, oilseed rape), preventing
fulfilment of catch crop requirements, were granted a reduction in the required catch crop area. From 2011,
this possibility ceased, and some farmers therefore had to alter their crop rotation from winter to spring
crops.
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2041207_0021.png
Figure 4.1: Development in crop distribution at the national level from 2005 to 2017, data from
the single payment register.
At the same time, voluntary alternatives to catch crops were introduced such as:
reduction in the farm nitrogen quota
growing of special crops between harvest and sowing of winter crops
growing catch crops on other farms
establishment of energy crops
separation and treatment (biogas and burning of the solid fraction of manure) of animal manure
from 2015: substitution of one hectare of catch crop by four hectares of set-aside near riparian areas
and located next to agricultural areas in rotation
from 2014: substitution of one hectare of catch crop by five hectares of winter wheat, if sown earlier
than September 7.
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According to the Council Directive 91/676/EEC concerning the protection of waters against pollution caused
by nitrates from agricultural sources Danish legislation should include a combined targeted scheme for
voluntary and mandatory catch crops for 2017 and 2018. To ensure non-deterioration of water quality, the
scheme assured that obligatory provisions for catch crops will enter into force if the voluntary agreements for
catch crops fail to deliver the environmental objectives. The areas under catch crops should be in addition to
the national requirement for mandatory catch crops pursuant to the Danish Act on farms' use of fertiliser and
on plant cover.
Data from the fertilizer accounts show that establishment of catch crops and catch crop alternatives
increased from about 118,600-138,000 ha in 2005/06-2007/08 to about 443,700 ha of catch crop
equivalents in 2017/18 (Table 4.1). The introduction and use of catch crop alternatives were equivalent to the
effect of 13,900-44,000 ha catch crops in the period 2011/12-2017/18.
Table 4.1 Area with catch crops and catch crop alternatives (1,000 hectares of catch crop equivalents)
reported by the farmers in the annual fertilizer account in the period 2005/06-2017/18.
05/06 06/07 07/08 08/09
Catch crops
Catch crop
alternatives
138.0
0
118.6
0
127.2
0
196.6
0
09/10
183.0
0
10/11
211.0
0
11/12
211.0
28.6
12/13
224.0
44.0
13/14
295.7
13.9
14/15
321.1
43.3
15/16
390.0
37.6
16/17
353.1
36.1
17/18
415.2
28.5
Consumption of nitrogen fertiliser and nitrogen in manure
Data on the annual use of inorganic fertilizers and the use of nitrogen in animal manure are obtained from
the fertilizer accounts (Table 4.22). In previous derogation reports, data on animal manure have been based
on the manure production for different categories of livestock. As these data are no longer recorded, the
manure application data are instead based on the data from the fertilizer account.
The application of animal manure underwent an annual decrease of approx. 1,150 t N from 2005 to 2017,
with some year-to-year variations, though. The use of inorganic fertilizers amounted to about 181,000-
202,000 t N year
-1
in 2005-2007 and increased to 205,000 and 209,300 t N year
-1
in 2008 and 2009,
probably due to the cultivation of previous set-aside areas. This was expected to be a temporary effect as the
procedure for setting the crop nitrogen standards implies that an increase in agricultural area with fertilizer
requirements must be followed by an equivalent reduction in nitrogen standards. Administratively, however,
this reduction is based on statistical data for the cultivated area, resulting in a delay of two years. Thus, in
2010-2014 the use of inorganic fertilizers decreased again, reaching the same level as in 2005-2007. The use
of inorganic fertilizer increased from 210,000 t N in 2015 to 242,000 and 237,000 t N in 2016 and 2017,
respectively, after the implementation of the Food and Agricultural Package, according to which farmers
were allowed to use more fertiliser in the two years 2016 and 2017 respectively.
Table 4.2: Development in the use of inorganic nitrogen fertilizer and of nitrogen in animal manure as
reported by the farmers in the annual fertilizer status accounts for the period 2005-2017 (1,000 t N a
-1
).
Fertilizer
Animal manure
2005
191
227
2006
181
218
2007
202
236
2008
205
230
2009
209
226
2010
198
224
2011
203
223
2012
198
220
2013
199
215
2014
203
212
2015
210
216
2016
242
219
2017
237
218
4.3 Modelled nitrate leaching for farm types and geographical areas and the impact of
derogation farms at the national level
–
2017 data
Modelled nitrate leaching demonstrates the effect of crop distribution, nitrogen input, soil type and water
percolation through the soil. This section includes a presentation of all these parameters. The analyses are
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based on the national datasets from the single payment register and the fertilizer accounts. However, before
data can be used for this purpose, a detailed compilation of the two datasets must be undertaken (Børgesen
et al., 2009). The single payment register contains information on crops at field-block level, and the fertilizer
accounts contain information on the use of nitrogen (inorganic fertilizer and organic manure) at farm level.
The two datasets are linked by means of the common farm identity number, and the reported amounts of
fertilizer and manure from the individual accounts are divided between the fields of each farm according to
the crop nitrogen standards. Hereby, we obtain a dataset with coherent data on crops and nitrogen
application at field level. We have no information on grass-ley from either dataset. Therefore, we estimate
this parameter based on the area with rotation grass, assuming a conversion rate of three years. If there is not
enough space in the crop rotation, the area with grass-ley is reduced accordingly. Data on catch crops are
derived from the fertilizer accounts.
The field-blocks are geographically mapped, implying that each field can be linked to soil maps and to the
meteorological grid net. Having established the soil type for each field-block, the standard harvest yield may
be estimated. Furthermore, nitrogen fixation is included using standard values for each crop. This final
dataset now contains all information necessary for geographically distributed computation of crop coverage
and field nitrogen balances and for modelling nitrate leaching.
Farm type
The data are divided into three main groups of farm type
–
arable farming, pig farms and cattle farms. A pig
farm is defined as a farm where more than 2/3 of the livestock units (LU) originate from pigs, and a cattle
farm is defined as a farm where at least 2/3 of the LU originate from cattle. An arable farm is a farm with less
than 2 LU, but the farm may import animal manure, which will appear in the fertilizer account and is
therefore included in this analysis. Other farm types are not included in this analysis.
Figure 4.2 shows that arable farms and pig farms grew cereals, particularly winter wheat, on the majority of
the agricultural area (63-76 %) in 2017. Other major cash crops were oilseed rape, peas, root crops (potatoes
and sugar beet) and grass for seeds (18-22%). Cereal silage, grass and maize took up a minor part of the area
(5-13%). Catch crops were grown on 15-18% and grass-ley on 2-3% of the agricultural area on arable and pig
farms.
Cattle farms have a different crop rotation. Cereals and other cash crops were grown on only 37% of the area,
whereas cereal silage, grass and maize were grown on 56% of the area. Fodder beet was grown on 1.2% of the
area. In addition, grass-ley was found on 9% and catch crops on 17% of the area.
On arable farms, an average amount of about 48 kg N ha
-1
from animal manure was applied. For pig
and cattle farms the amounts were, respectively, 99 kg N ha
-1
and 129 kg N ha
-1
(Table 4.3).
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Figure 4.2: Crop distribution for three main farm types in 2017. Combined dataset from the single
payment register and the fertilizer status accounts.
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Table 4.3: N inputs, N balances and nitrate leaching and nitrate concentration at bottom of the root zone
for three main farm types in 2017. Combined dataset.
N balance
Root zone water
Comm. Animal Other N
N
Seeds Total Har-
N
Percol. Nitrate NO
3-
fertiliser manure org. fix. depos.
input vest balance
leaching conc.
(kg N ha
-1
a
-1
)
(mm a
-1
)
(kg N ha
-1
) (mg l
-1
)
Arable
Pigs
Cattle
110
89
73
48
99
129
5.4
1.2
1.4
8.8
5.2
29
13
13
14
1.9
2.1
1.4
187
210
247
110
113
142
77
97
106
337
380
414
56
66
66
73
77
71
The use of inorganic fertilizers decreased with increasing application of animal manure. Total inputs of
nitrogen from inorganic fertilizer, manure, other organic sources, N fixation and atmospheric
deposition added up to 187, 210 and 247 kg N ha
-1
for arable farms, pig farms and cattle farms,
respectively. N balances, calculated as the difference between the total input of nitrogen and removal
by harvested crops, were 77, 97 and 106 kg N ha
-1
for arable farms, pig farms and cattle farms,
respectively. As expected, modelled nitrate leaching was lower from arable farms (on average
56 kg N ha
-1
) than from animal husbandry farms (66 kg N ha
-1
). N leaching was, on average, similar for
pig and cattle farms despite a larger N input and N balances for cattle farms than for pig farms. The
reason is that cattle farms grow a high proportion of fodder crops that have a long growing season and
therefore a larger N uptake.
On arable farms, the modelled nitrate leaching amounted to 73% of the N balance, which is a high relative to
the 68% for pig farms and 62 % for cattle farms. An explanation may be that leaching on these soils with low
input of organic manure is affected by mineralisation of the organic pool, i.e. depletion of the total soil N
content. However, the high leaching fraction may also be caused by the uncertainties associated with the two
separate calculations of the N leaching and N balance.
Water percolation through the soil is considerably higher on cattle farms than on arable and pig farms.
However, this is not due to the differences in farm type but due to the fact that the cattle farms are located
mainly in the western part of the country with more sandy soil and higher rainfall and a consequently higher
percolation. The higher percolation on cattle farms leads to dilution of the nitrate concentration in the soil
water. Thus, the modelled average nitrate concentrations in soil water were 73-77 mg NO
3
l
-1
on arable and
pig farms, respectively, and 71 mg NO
3
l
-1
on cattle farms for the year 2017.
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2041207_0026.png
Geographical areas
Farm types are not evenly distributed throughout the country because of variations in farming conditions.
Denmark has therefore been divided into five farming regions (Figure 4.3).
Figure 4.3: Farming regions in Denmark with different soil types, farming practices and rainfall and the
position of the six monitored agricultural catchments.
Table 4.4 shows that Zealand is dominated by arable farming, whereas Eastern (E) Jutland and Funen are
dominated by arable farming and pig production. Finally, North (N), North-West (NW) and West (W)
Jutland have the highest density of cattle farming. Thus, arable and pig farms are located mainly in the
eastern part of Denmark on loamy soils and with low rainfall, whereas cattle farms are located mainly in the
northern and western parts on sandy soils and with higher rainfall, the rainfall increasing from north to
south.
Table 4.4: Distribution of farm types and soil types and water percolation through the soils in Denmark
divided into five main geographical areas
–
2017.
Arable
Zealand
Jutland E+
Funen
Jutland N
Jutland NW
Jutland W
64
42
35
28
31
Pig
Cattle
Other
8
7
12
9
9
Sand
% of agricultural area
13
15
26
25
17
23
15
37
41
45
Organic
soils
% of agricultural area
5
92
3
26
70
4
10
33
18
10
5
6
Loam
Percol.
mm/year
199
335
365
450
542
80
62
76
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2041207_0027.png
Figure 4.4: Crop distribution for five farming regions in Denmark in 2017. Combined dataset from the
single payment register and the fertilizer accounts.
The crop distribution within the five farming regions of Denmark follows the same pattern as for farm types,
i.e. mainly cereals and other cash crops on the islands and in Eastern Jutland and cereals and fodder crops in
West and North Jutland (Figure 4.4).
The input of nitrogen with animal manure, the total nitrogen input and the field nitrogen balances are lowest
on Zealand, higher in E Jutland and on Funen and highest in W, NW and N Jutland (Table 4.5). In the latter
three areas, the nitrogen input varied between 213 and 230 kg N ha
-1
. The modelled nitrate leaching generally
increased from east to west due to increases in nitrogen input and percolation. Within the three western and
northern parts of Jutland, the nitrate leaching increased from northern to southern Jutland, mainly due to
increased water percolation through the root zone. Higher water percolation led to dilution of the nitrate
concentrations of the soil water, resulting in an average nitrate concentration in soil water of 82, 75, 77, 71
and 64 mg NO
3
l
-1
on Zealand, Funen + E and N Jutland, and NW and W Jutland, respectively.
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2041207_0028.png
Table 4.5: N inputs and N balances, nitrate leaching and nitrate concentration at the bottom of the root
zone calculated for five geographical areas in Denmark in 2017. Combined dataset from the single
payment register and the fertilizer accounts
N balance
Comm. Animal Other N-fix.
N-
Seeds
fertiliser manure org. N
depos.
Total
input
Har-
vest
Root zone water
N
Percol. Nitrate
balance
leaching
NO
3-
conc
kg N ha
-1
a
-1
Zealand
Jutl. E
+Funen
Jutland N
Jutland
NW
Jutland W
119
98
75
73
74
34
75
102
110
116
5.1
2.6
1.9
0.6
3.6
9.4
11.7
19.9
17.7
19.9
11
14
12
13
15
1.8
1.8
1.6
1.6
1.8
181
202
213
216
230
115
117
119
122
128
67
86
94
94
102
mm a
-1
kg N ha
-1
mg l
-1
199
335
365
450
542
37
57
64
72
79
82
75
77
71
64
Derogation farms
Derogation farms are mainly located in N, NW and W Jutland where cattle farming is dominant (see chapter
2). The effect of the derogation was evaluated for these three geographical areas. The cattle farms were
grouped into four livestock density groups: 0-1.0, 1.0-1.4, 1.4-1.7 LU ha
-1
and derogation farms, 1.7-2.3 LU ha
-
1
.
The crop distributions for the three geographical areas were found to be almost identical, with some
differences in cover between spring and winter cereals and more maize in W Jutland (Figure 4.5). There was
a clear trend towards a decrease in nitrate leaching in areas with cereals and other cash crops with increasing
livestock density and, in turn, an increase in the area with fodder crops with increasing livestock density. The
area with roughage amounted to 55, 72 and 72 % for the three groups, 0-1.0, 1.0-1.4, 1.4-1.7 LU ha
-1
,
respectively, whereas derogation farms grew roughage on an average of 84% of the area.
The effect of derogation on nitrate leaching was evaluated separately for the three geographical areas. The
nitrogen input as well as the field nitrogen balances increased with increasing livestock density (Table 4.6).
Modelled nitrate leaching is a combined effect of two opposing mechanisms
–
an increase in leaching due to
increased nitrogen input and a decrease in leaching due to an increased area with roughage. Table 4.6 shows
that modelled nitrate leaching generally increased with increasing livestock density and hence with
increasing nitrogen input. Thus, differences occurred in the modelled annual nitrogen leaching of 3, 5 and
10 kg N ha
-1
, respectively, between derogation farms and farms using 140-170 kg N ha
-1
of organic N in the
three Jutland regions. Similarly, nitrate concentrations in the soil water leaving the root zone were
7 mg NO
3
l
-1
higher for derogations farms than for cattle farms using 140-170 kg organic N ha
-1
in the three
regions.
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2041207_0029.png
Figure 4.5: Average crop distribution for four groups of livestock density in N, NW and W Jutland in
2017. Combined dataset from the single payment register and the fertilizer accounts.
The use of legumes (clover, alfalfa, peas) in grass and cereal silage is shown in Table 4.7. The general trend is
that derogation farms grow less legumes than non-derogation farms (Table 4.7). Thus, clover or alfalfa (max.
50% share) in rotation grass was used on 76% of the rotation grass area for derogation farms and on 83-93%
for non-derogation farms. For permanent grass, the equivalent values were 19% for derogation farms and 23-
38% for non-derogation farms. Cereal silage with peas amounted to 10% of the silage area for derogation
farms and 19-21% for non-derogation farms.
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Table 4.6: N inputs, N balances and nitrate leaching and nitrate concentration at the bottom of the root
zone calculated for four groups of livestock density at cattle farms and for three geographical areas in
Jutland, Denmark, 2017. Combined dataset from the single payment register and the fertilizer accounts.
N balance
Region
Live-
stock Comm. Animal Other
density fertiliser manure org.N
LU/ha
Root zone water
Nitrate
leaching
kg N ha
-1
NO
3-
conc
mg l
-1
N
N
Total
Seeds
Harvest Balance
fix. depos.
input
Percol.
kg N ha
-1
a
-1
mm a
-1
Jutland
N
0-1.0
1.0-1.4
1.4-1.7
1.7-2.3
0-1.0
1.0-1.4
1.4-1.7
1.7-2.3
0-1.0
1.0-1.4
1.4-1.7
1.7-2.3
91
44
72
70
82
53
70
62
79
41
70
73
56
124
151
202
63
123
151
199
60
126
152
205
2.5
0.3
0.3
0.1
1.5
0.4
0.0
0.1
6.6
1.4
1.9
0.5
19
45
37
40
21
35
33
36
21
45
31
29
12
12
12
13
13
13
13
13
15
15
16
15
1.3
1.0
1.3
1.3
1.4
1.2
1.4
1.5
1.5
1.1
1.5
1.6
182
227
275
326
182
226
269
313
184
229
272
324
109
133
152
177
111
132
153
173
110
136
154
179
73
94
123
148
71
94
116
140
73
94
118
144
359
355
360
349
434
449
449
435
526
539
544
550
56
54
67
70
60
65
78
83
62
68
83
93
69
67
83
90
61
64
77
84
52
56
68
75
Jutland
NW
Jutland
W
Table 4.7: Use of legumes in grass and cereal silage at cattle farms for derogation and non-derogation
farms 2017.
0-1.0
Rotation grass
No clover/alfalfa
< 50% clover/alfalfa
> 50% clover/alfalfa
Permanent grass
No clover/alfalfa
< 50% clover/alfalfa
> 50% clover/alfalfa
Cereal silage
No legumes
< 50% legumes
100% legumes
13.2
16
83
1
15.0
62
38
0
1.4
76
19
6
Livestock density (LU ha
-1
)
1.0-1.4
1.4-1.7
share of agricultural area (%)
27.7
6
93
1
10.7
71
29
0
6.0
50
21
29
24.8
share of rotation grass (%)
13
86
0
share of agricultural area (%)
8.1
share of permanent grass (%)
77
23
0
share of agricultural area (%)
5.2
share of cereal silage (%)
68
20
12
1.7-2.3
32.4
24
76
0
5.8
81
19
0
7.2
90
10
0
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4.4 Development in modelled nitrate leaching in the Agricultural Catchment Monitoring
Programme 1990-2017
This section deals with the general development in nitrate leaching from 1990/91 to 2017/18. Information on
agricultural practises is derived from the Agricultural Catchment Monitoring Programme. This programme
includes six small agricultural catchments situated in various parts of the country in order to cover the
variation in soil type and rainfall and hence in agricultural practises (Figure 4.3). The farmers are
interviewed every year about livestock, crops and fertilization and cultivation practises. Nitrate leaching is
modelled for all fields in the catchments, based on the information on agricultural practises and standard
percolation values, calculated on the basis of the climate for 1990-2010.
In 2017, 126 farmers participated in the investigation. Of all the investigated farms, 26 were cattle holdings,
and six of these were registered as derogation farms. These derogation farms covered 17% of the total area in
the Agricultural Monitoring catchments in 2016/17. This is considerably higher than derogation farm area at
national level in 2016/17, which amounted to 8.4% of the agricultural area.
The modelled nitrate leaching from the agricultural area in the catchments from 1990 to 2017 (representing
the hydrological years 1990/91 to 2017/18) is shown in Figure 4.6 as an average for sandy and loamy
catchments, respectively.
Figure 4.6: Modelled nitrate leaching in a standard climate for the fields of the Agricultural Catchment
Monitoring Programme 1990/91-2017/18.
Seen relative to the distribution of the main soil types in Denmark, the modelled nitrate leaching decreased
by 43% during the period 1991 to 2003 due to the general improvement in agriculture and fertilization
practises (Action Plan I+II). After 2008, there was a small increase in nitrate leaching, particularly on sandy
soils, probably caused by suspension of the set-aside obligation. At the national level, about 120,000 hectares
of set-aside were cultivated in 2008 and 2009, leading to a change in crop rotation towards a higher leaching
potential and a temporary increase in fertilizer application. After 2011, the modelled nitrate leaching for the
sandy catchments decreased again and reached the same level as before 2008.
For the loamy catchments, the modelled annual nitrate leaching was less affected by the change in set-aside.
The nitrate leaching was relatively stable around 50 kg N ha
-1
during 2003-2013, decreasing with app. 8 kg N
ha
-1
in 2014 and 2015 and increasing again to the level of 2003-2013 in 2016 and 2017.
For the sandy catchments, the annual leaching varied between 79-81 kg N ha
-1
in the period 2014-2017,
which was 14 kg N ha
-1
lower than the leaching of 93 kg N ha
-1
in 2008 and 2009, but at the same level as the
leaching in 2003. The lower leaching in these four years is mainly due to a higher effect of catch crops on
cereals and maize. The calculated effects of catch crops on maize and cereals are identical in the model as no
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measurements of the effects of catch crops on maize were available when the empirical model was developed.
During the last six years, farmers and researchers have intensified their focus on the management and effects
of catch crops on maize (Blicher-Mathiesen et al., 2016). When maize was cropped without catch crops
2014/15-2017/18, the average modelled annual leaching for the sandy catchments was approx. 5 kg N ha
-1
higher for those years.
The purpose of the root zone modelling is to show the effects of measures introduced to mitigate nutrient
losses from agriculture. The modelling is therefore carried out for normalised growth conditions, i.e.
averaging the model output for a 20-year period: The model is run for each year in the 20-year period and
model outputs are then averaged for the period. The climatic data used cover the period 1990-2010. Actual
measurements of nitrate leaching will show higher annual variations than the climatic average of the
modelled values as the measurements depend on the actual climate.
Certain forms of soil cultivation and ploughing of grass fields in autumn were prohibited as from autumn
2011. This circumstance is not considered in the leaching model due to lack of actual measurements that
could otherwise have been applied in the model development. It is estimated that postponed soil tillage will
reduce root zone leaching by 2,400 t N at the national level corresponding to an average effect of about
1 kg N ha
-1
(Børgesen et al., 2013).
4.5 Measurements of nitrate in water leaving the root zone
In five of the six Agricultural Monitoring Catchments, water samples are collected regularly at 30 sites. One
of the sites is covered by forest and is therefore not included in the data on nitrate concentrations measured
in agricultural areas. Measurements were ceased on a sandy site in 2011 as the farmers did not want to
participate in the monitoring. Two sites on a loamy catchment are located very close to the edge of the field,
and tractor transport in and out of the fields results in high damage to crops, uneven fertilizer application
and very high values of measured nitrate leaching. Out of the remaining 27 sites on agricultural areas, 14 are
located on loamy soils and 13 on sandy soils and the data on these are deemed valid for use in the trend
analysis of the loamy and sandy catchments. The samples represent the root zone water (approx. 1 m depth
–
30 samples per year) and the upper oxic groundwater (1.5-5 m depth
–
6 samples per year). The measured
concentrations are shown as annual average values for loamy and sandy soils, respectively, for the period
1990/91-2016/17 (Figure 4.7).
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Figure 4.7: Annual flow-weighted nitrate concentrations measured in root zone water (1 m below
ground level) and annual average nitrate concentrations measured in upper oxic groundwater (1.5-
5 m below ground level), the Agricultural Catchment Monitoring Programme 1990/91-2016/17.
Generally, measured data for nitrate leaching from the root zone on only 27 sites cannot be used directly for
estimating the effect of a single variable as the input of fertilizer or manure because of the high variability in
actual fertilizer and manure practice between the monitoring fields and measured years. Instead, the data
were used for the development of the nitrate leaching model, N-LES4, which was subsequently used for
calculating the leaching from all the fields in the catchments relative to agricultural practises (Figure 4.6).
The measurements are also used for calculating statistical trends for the monitoring period.
General trend for nitrate concentrations in water leaving the root zone
There is strong inter-annual variation in the measured nitrate concentrations due to differences in rainfall
and temperature. Therefore, a long time series and a large number of measuring points are needed to detect
any statistically significant trend. Such data series are available from the Danish Monitoring Programme. A
statistical trend analysis, a Mann-Kendall test, incorporating annual variations in the mean annual flow-
weighted nitrate concentrations for water leaving the root zone, showed that concentrations significantly
decreased by 1.2 and 2.6 mg NO
3
l
-1
a
-1
for the measured sites on loamy and sandy soils, respectively, and for
the whole 26-year monitoring period from 1990/91 to 2015/16.
On loamy catchments, the measured nitrate concentrations in root zone water decreased from 61-155
mg NO
3
l
-1
in the 5-year period 1990/91-1994/95 to 37-66 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the 5-year period 2011/12-2015/16
and increased to 101 mg NO
3
l
-1
in 2016/17. The high nitrate concentrations are seen in years with low
percolation as observed on loamy soils in 2004/05, 2010/11 and in 2016/17. On sandy catchments, the
nitrate concentration decreased from 73-207 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the 5-year period 1990/91-1994/95 to 54-73
mg NO
3
l
-1
in the 5-year period 2011/12-2015/16 and increased to 99 mg NO
3
l
-1
in 2016/17 (Figure 4.7).
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After 2003/04 (Action Plan III + Green Growth), no statistically significant change in measured nitrate
concentrations in soil water leaving the root zone has been recorded. However, before 2011/12, high
concentrations were temporarily observed for sandy soils. This is most likely due to growth of crops with high
leaching potential on these fields, such as turnover of grassland, followed by cereals with no catch crops the
following years, growing of maize and winter rape etc.
It should be noted that the measurements of nitrate leaching originate from a small number of sampling
stations (27 stations). Furthermore, the measurements are affected by high crop yields, in particular in 2009,
and effects of crop rotation, especially of grass in rotation. These conditions induce higher inter-annual
variations than seen in the modelled nitrate leaching, which covers a larger area including approx. 126 farms
(Figure 4.6).
In the upper groundwater (1.5-5.0 m below ground level), nitrate concentrations were lower than in the root
zone water, indicating nitrate reduction in the aquifer sediment between the bottom of the root zone and the
uppermost groundwater (Figure 4.7).
On loamy catchments, the measured nitrate concentrations in the upper oxic groundwater decreased from
40-47 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the 5-year period 1990/91-1994/95 to 27-29 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the 5-year period 2012/13-
2016/17. On sandy catchments, the nitrate concentration decreased from 87-110 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the 5-year
period 1990/91-1994/95 to 53-73 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the 5-year period 2012/13-2016/17.
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Nitrate concentrations in water leaving the root zone for cattle holdings
Two to three of the monitoring sites belong to cattle holdings that, on average, used between 130 and 170 kg
organic manure N ha
-1
in the period 2000/01-2016/17 and four to five sites belong to holdings that, on
average, used more than 170 kg organic manure N ha
-1
at the monitoring sites. Measurements of nitrate in
water leaving the root zone are shown annually for each site for the period 2000/01-2016/17. At one of the
sites, station “st 604”, the manure input changed from a high annual input, above 170
kg N ha
-1
until 2008
(data shown in Figure 4.8 bottom), to a lower input, below 170 kg N ha
-1
, in the following years (data shown
in Figure 4.8 top). Suction cups at
site “st 203” were re-established
in 2012, meaning that no measurements
for this site were available for 2012/13 and 2013/14. The annual manure input at
site “st 202” changed to a
much lower level of 78 and 178 kg N ha
-1
for 2012 and 2013, respectively, and the nitrate concentration in the
root zone water is therefore not shown for these two years.
Figure 4.8: Measured nitrate concentrations in root zone water (1 m depth) with average application of
130-170 (A) and more than 170 kg organic N per hectare (B) at the sites (average application of organic
manure N is shown in brackets). Figures for annual averages for the measured stations, average
application of 130-170 (C) and more than 170 kg organic N per hectare (D). All data from the period
2000/01-2016/17 are shown.
Annual variations in measured concentrations at the individual monitoring stations were expected, partly
due to crop rotation and variations in yield and meteorological conditions.
The sites that annually received an average of 130-170 kg N in manure ha
-1
in the period 2000/01-2016/17
had high average nitrate concentration in the six years 2005/06, 2008/09-2010/11, 2013/14 and 2015/16
(Figure 4.8 top left). At some of the sites that annually received, on average, more than 170 kg N in manure
ha
-1
in the same period, nitrate concentrations were very high, for instance at
“st 604” in five out of six years
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between 2004/05 and 2009/10. However, other sites receiving high manure input showed relatively lower
soil water concentrations (Figure 4.8 bottom). The average flow-weighted nitrate concentration in root zone
water at three specific sites that, on average, received 186-266 kg organic manure N per hectare varied
between 41-120 mg NO
3
l
-1
for the hydrological years in the period 2012/13-2016/17.
High nitrate concentrations are most likely a result of crop rotation, especially turnover of clover grass in
rotation, followed by cereals without catch crops or high N input to maize, and they cannot, therefore, be
linked to the level of manure input alone.
Phosphorus concentrations in the water leaving the root zone are shown in Figure 4.9. Generally, the
concentrations varied between 0.005 and 0.050 mg PO
4
-P l
-1
, irrespective of the use of organic manure.
However, on one field receiving an average of 148 kg organic N ha
-1
(st 608), P concentrations were much
more variable. The soil texture in this field is coarse sand and it is located in an area with high rainfall.
Figure 4.9: Measured phosphorus concentrations as dissolved orthophosphate (PO4-P) at soil water
stations (1 m depth) with average application of 130-170 (A) and more than 170 kg organic N per hectare
(B) at the sites (average application of organic manure N is shown in brackets). All data for the period
2000/01-2016/17 are shown.
4.6 The nitrogen flow to surface water in agricultural catchments
When percolating water leaves the root zone, it is partitioned into a component that discharges to surface
water and a component that discharges to groundwater from where it will eventually
–
often some years later
–
drain into the streams. The pathways for water and nutrients in agricultural catchments are analysed in the
Agricultural Catchment Monitoring Programme. Nitrate concentrations are measured in soil water and in
water from tile drains from three loamy catchments and two sandy catchments.
The monitoring programme does not allow a specific evaluation of the effect of derogation farms on the
nitrate transport in the streams since measurements at the catchment outlet integrate the effects of all
activities in the catchment. However, the monitoring programme will provide an overview of the general
trend for surface water, including the effect of any derogation farms in the catchment.
This chapter gives an overview of the nitrogen pathways in the hydrological cycle and describes the trends for
nitrate in water for the period 1990-2017. Continued monitoring within the framework of the Agricultural
Catchment Programme and the Stream Programme will provide indicators for the future development.
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Table 4.8: Partitioning of water flow in streams into three components
–
rapid, intermediate and slow
responding water. The analysis included three loamy catchments and two sandy catchments (1989/90-
2002/03)
Flow response
Rapid
Loamy catchments
Sandy catchments
41 %
20 %
Intermediate
16 %
23 %
Slow
43 %
57 %
The hydrological pathways
An analysis of the water flow in the streams of the five agricultural catchments has shown that it can be
conceptually divided into three components
–
rapid, intermediate and slow response to precipitation (Table
4.8). These components may be regarded as flow from the upper soil layers (including tile drainage), from
the upper oxic groundwater and from deep groundwater.
In loamy catchments, the flow path is characterised by relatively rapidly responding water (from upper soil
layers), whereas there is a larger proportion of slowly responding water (from deeper groundwater) in sandy
catchments.
Figure 4.10: Measured nitrate concentrations in the hydrological cycle in three loamy catchment and
two sandy catchments in the Agricultural Catchment Monitoring Programme. The values are calculated
as an annual mean for the period 2012/13-2016/17.
Figure 4.10 illustrates measurements of nitrate concentrations in soil root zone water (mg NO3 l-1), upper
oxic groundwater (1.5-5 m below ground level) and in streams. When water percolates from the root zone to
the upper groundwater, denitrification processes take place. Thus, nitrate concentrations in the upper
groundwater are lower than in the root zone water. When the water passes through the deeper aquifers, it
will usually reach the redox cline where the remaining nitrate will be removed by biological and geo-chemical
reduction processes.
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As sandy catchments are characterised by the groundwater flow, the water discharging to the streams has
been exposed to reduction processes. Thus, nitrate concentrations in the stream water are relatively low. In
loamy catchments, the discharging water has mainly passed through the upper soil layers and through the
drainage system where there is less nitrate reduction. Hence, nitrate concentrations in the streams are higher
than in sandy catchments.
In this context, it should be noted that cattle farms, and hence the derogations farms, are mainly located in
the western and northern parts of Jutland characterised by sandy soils and deep groundwater flow, leading to
high nitrate removal and low nitrogen concentrations in the streams.
Trends in nitrate concentrations in the hydrological cycle
The development in nitrate concentrations in root zone water, upper oxic groundwater and stream water is
shown in Figure 4.11. Statistical analyses incorporating the annual variations showed that the nitrate
concentration in water leaving the root zone decreased significantly by 1.2 and 2.6 mg NO
3
l
-1
a
-1
at the
measured sites on loamy and sandy soils, respectively, and calculated for the 26-year monitoring period from
1990/91 to 2015/16. However, as mentioned before, nitrate concentrations increased to 101 and 99
mg NO
3
l
-1
on loamy and sandy soils, respectively, in 2016/17 (see section 4.5). In the Stream Monitoring
Programme, the development is analysed for a larger number of streams. This programme showed that
during the period 1989-2017 an average reduction of 44% in total nitrogen transport took place in 52
agricultural catchments representing both loamy and sandy soils (Thodsen et al., 2019).
Figure 4.11: Nitrate concentration in root zone water, upper groundwater and in streams for three loamy
catchments and two sandy catchments according to the Agricultural Catchment Monitoring Programme,
1990/91-2016/17.
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The general conclusions to be drawn from the Agricultural Catchment Monitoring
Programme are that:
Measured nitrate concentrations in root zone soil water (1.0 m below ground level) decreased steadily
from 1990/01 to 2015/16, albeit with annual variations. In 2016/17, the concentration increased. On
loamy catchments, the measured nitrate concentrations in the root zone soil water decreased from 61-
155 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the 5-year period 1990/91-1994/95 to 37-66 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the 5-year period 2011/12-
2015/16, but increased in 2016/17 to 101 mg NO
3
l
-1
. High nitrate concentrations are seen in years with
low percolation as observed on loamy soils in 2004/05, 2010/11 and in 2016/17. On sandy catchments,
the nitrate concentrations were 73-207 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the 5-year period 1990/91-1994/95, decreased to
54-73 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the 5-year period 2011/12-2015/16, but increased to 99 mg NO
3
l
-1
in 2016/17.
Measured nitrate concentrations in the upper oxic groundwater (1.5-5.0 m below ground level)
decreased to a level well below the limit of 50 mg NO
3
l
-1
for loamy catchments and to a level between 53
and 73 mg NO3 l
-1
for the two sandy catchments in the period 2012/13-2016/17.
Measured average flow-weighted nitrate concentrations in root zone water at three to four specific sites
receiving, on average, -266 kg organic manure N per hectare varied between 41-120 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the
hydrological years in the period 2012/13-2016/17.
Modelling of nitrate leaching for three loamy and two sandy catchments:
For the loamy catchments, modelled annual nitrate leaching was relatively stable around 50 kg N
ha
-1
during 2003-2013, after which it decreased by app. 8 kg N ha
-1
in 2014 and 2015 and increased
again to the level of 2003-2013 in 2016 and 2017.
For the sandy catchments, the modelled annual leaching varied between 79 and 81 kg N ha
-1
in the
period 2014-2017, which is 14 kg N ha
-1
lower than the high leaching of 93 kg N ha
-1
in 2008 and
2009 but at the same level as the leaching in 2003. The lower leaching in these four years is mainly
due to a higher effect of catch crops on cereals and maize.
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5. Reinforced monitoring in areas characterized by sandy soils
Wibke Christel & Johnny Machon, Ministry of Environment and Food of Denmark,
based on selected data from the National Monitoring Programme of Water and Nature (NOVANA),
provided by the Danish Environmental Protection Agency, and data on derogation farm location, provided
by the Danish Agricultural Agency
5.1 Introduction
So far, the derogation report with respect to data on water quality has been based on data from the national
agricultural catchment monitoring programme. This programme combines detailed information on both
agricultural practice and crop rotation as well as data on water quality in root zone water, uppermost
groundwater and small local streams. Monitoring takes place in five agricultural catchments throughout the
country, of which three are located in parts of Denmark characterized by loamy soils and two in the western
part, where sandy soils predominate. The latest, relevant results from the programme are reported in chapter
4 of this report.
Due to the limited size of the area monitored within the national agricultural catchment monitoring
programme, only very few derogation farms are located in the five catchments. The majority of derogation
farms are found in the western part of Denmark, especially in the western part of middle and southern
Jutland, as shown on the maps in chapter 2 of this report. This part of Denmark is also characterized by
predominantly sandy soils.
The derogation decision from 2017 (2017/847/EU) introduced the requirement that water quality should be
reported using data from reinforced monitoring. The reinforced monitoring is carried out on sandy soils and
in an area that comprises fields belonging to at least 3% of all derogation farms. The latest derogation
decision from 2018 (2018/1928/EU) specifies in Article 10 (2) that, in addition to the monitoring obligations
in prior derogation decisions, "[...]
Reinforced monitoring of water quality shall be carried out in areas with
sandy soils. In addition, nitrates concentrations in surface and groundwater shall be monitored in at least
3 % of all holdings covered by an authorisation."
In chapter 5 of the preceding derogation report, sent to the EU Commission in December 2017, an approach
to comply with the reinforced monitoring requirements was proposed. However, as a consequence of the
subsequent dialogue with the Commission, an alternative approach has been developed in cooperation with
the Danish Environmental Protection Agency. The details of this alternative approach were presented to the
Commission in the summer of 2018.
5.2 Method
Selection of relevant monitoring stations
Besides the results from the national agricultural catchment monitoring programme (see chapter 4), which
so far has formed the basis for annual reporting according to the derogation decision, Danish authorities also
collect data through a number of other national monitoring programmes. As part of the
“National
Monitoring
Programme of Water and Nature”
(NOVANA), data from approximately 500 water quality stations in
streams and rivers are collected on a regular basis. The primary purpose is to determine nutrient loads to
sensitive recipients, i.e., coastal waters and lakes. Water samples from more than 1,000 groundwater
monitoring stations are also analysed on a regular basis; the sampling frequency varies from several times
annually to once during a multi-year period, according to the monitoring and reporting requirements of the
Nitrates Directive and the Water Framework Directive. One of the usual parameters that both groundwater
and surface water samples are analysed for is nitrate concentration.
Simultaneously, the Danish Agricultural Agency registers which fields belong to derogation farms.
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The approach is based on the identification of either surface water or groundwater monitoring stations
located in close proximity to a field belonging to a derogation farm. More precisely, the GIS-analysis is based
on the coordinates of the surface water or groundwater monitoring station as well as the surrounding area
within a fixed 15-metre radius. This circle allows for an overlap between the position of the monitoring
station and any fields in close proximity.
Only water course and groundwater monitoring stations located within 15 metres of a field registered to a
derogation farm are selected. To determine whether this criterion is met, the latest registry data from the
Danish Agricultural Agency is used.
If a groundwater monitoring well fulfils the location criterion but contains several monitoring stations at
different depth (“multi-filter wells”), only one of these stations is selected; typically,
the station that has the
largest number of prior nitrate concentration samples.
Groundwater monitoring stations at a depth of 80 metres or more have been excluded from the data set, as
data from the national groundwater monitoring
(“GRUMO”) programme
shows that nitrate levels are no
longer quantifiable (<1 mg/L) at these depths.
Only surface water monitoring stations that are part of the national programme monitoring “Transport of
nutrients in streams” have been considered for the
reinforced monitoring. A few mobile stations used for lake
monitoring that would have fulfilled the proximity criterion have been excluded from the data set, as their
locations typically change every year, making it impossible to create time series. Monitoring stations that
have been installed in water courses to monitor the outflow from constructed wetlands have also been
excluded.
In all, this selection method has identified a total of 54 monitoring stations. 34 stations of these (63 %) are
groundwater monitoring stations, while 20 stations (37%) are located in water courses. The distribution
between station types is a direct consequence of the higher density of groundwater as opposed to surface
water monitoring stations throughout Denmark.
The locations of the 54 monitoring stations are presented in Figure 5.1, which also depicts all fields registered
to derogation farms. Due to the scaling of the map, it would not have been meaningful to show only fields in
close proximity to the monitoring stations.
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2041207_0042.png
Figure 5.1: Map showing the locations of the 54 monitoring stations selected as the reporting basis for
the reinforced monitoring. The squares show the location of in total 34 groundwater monitoring
stations at different depth - these may overlap due to the scale of the map. The circles show the location
of the 20 water course monitoring stations. Grey shading indicates all fields belonging to Danish
derogation farms.
The majority of derogation farms are located in the northern and southern parts of the peninsula of Jutland,
also illustrated in chapter 2 of this report. These parts of the country are characterized by sandy soils,
whereas loamier soils dominate the more eastern parts of the country. Consequently, the described approach
of linking the locations of monitoring stations to fields belonging to derogation farms results in a
considerable enlargement of the data basis for reporting of water quality in sandy areas.
The geological map in Figure 5.2 illustrates the soil substrates throughout Denmark.
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2041207_0043.png
Figure 5.2: Geological map of Denmark showing the substrates that are the basis for soil development.
Modified from a map produced by GEUS. The legend is only available in Danish, but the four main soil
substrate types that
can be categorized as “sand” have been marked with a “S” in the
legend.
Coverage of Danish derogation farms
The locations of the 54 monitoring stations have been linked to 66 fields, which in turn belong to 48 different
derogation farms. The number of stations exceeds the number of derogation farms, as some farms own
several fields in proximity to a monitoring station, and as there may be more than one monitoring station
located very close to a given field. Out of the 48 farms, 21 are subject to the reinforced monitoring due to the
proximity of their fields to a water course monitoring station, while 26 farms are included owing to proximity
to groundwater monitoring stations. One derogation farm has fields located close to both groundwater and
surface water monitoring stations. The total number of farms encompassed by the reinforced monitoring
corresponds to approximately 3.5% of all holdings that make use of the derogation.
5.3 Characterization of monitoring stations and data analysis
Groundwater
As indicated on Figure 5.1, the selected groundwater monitoring stations are located at depths below the
7
surface ranging from 1.75 m to 72 m. The majority of the stations monitor water quality in comparatively
shallow groundwater, at an average depth of 21.6 m and a median depth of 14.0 m. Of the selected
groundwater monitoring stations, 64.7 % are located less than 20 metres below surface. For 29.4% of the
stations, the samples are of very shallow groundwater from a depth of less than 10 m.
7
For available data up until 2017, the deepest selected monitoring station was located at 62 m below the surface. Data
from the deeper groundwater is expected to be included in future reports, when water from these stations will be sampled
and analysed for nitrate again.
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The majority of groundwater monitoring stations will be sampled at least once per year in the future. Historic
data since 2002
–
the year Denmark obtained a derogation from the Nitrates Directive for the first time
–
have been included to the extent that they are available. If groundwater was sampled more than once per
year at a monitoring station, the annual average nitrate concentration has been calculated for the station for
each sampling year.
For the purpose of presenting the data in the results section below, the stations have been grouped into three
different categories, also reflected in Figure 5.1: stations at a depth of less than 10 m below surface, stations
at 10 to almost 20 m depth and stations at 20 m depth or deeper. Annual average nitrate concentrations have
been calculated for each depth category for each year since 2002, based on the actual number of stations
sampled in the respective year.
Surface water
The monitored water courses vary considerably in size and flow rate. The widths of the water courses at the
monitoring station vary from 2 m to 23 m. The average water course width at the monitoring station is 7.0
metres, while 6 out of the 20 stations are located in small streams of less than 5 metres’ width.
Samples from water courses are generally analysed for Nitrite- and Nitrate-Nitrogen (N). Nitrite-N-
concentrations are typically negligible, and under this assumption, nitrate concentrations in the water
samples could be calculated by multiplying the Nitrate-N concentration by a factor of 4.4268. In this chapter,
the surface water concentration is generally given in Nitrite- and Nitrate-Nitrogen. Historic data since 2002
is included to the extent that it is available. Only data from monitoring stations that have been sampled at
least 8 times annually in the period before 2017 are displayed in the results. In 2017, each water course
monitoring station has been sampled more frequently, from 13 to 19 times annually.
For the purpose of presenting the data in the results section, stations have been grouped based on the
approximate width of the water course at the sampling station site into three different categories, as also
displayed in figure 5.1: less than 5 m, 5 to 10 m and more than 20 m width. Average nitrate concentrations
have been calculated for each category for each year since 2002, based on the actual number of stations
sampled in the respective year.
As a consequence of the political agreement on the Food and Agricultural Package from December 2015, the
number of water course monitoring stations has been significantly increased. Nine out of the 20 water course
stations selected for the reinforced monitoring were established in 2016 as a consequence of the agreement.
5.4 Results and Discussion
Groundwater
Figure 5.3 shows the nitrate concentration of each groundwater monitoring station selected for reinforced
monitoring, as well as the average nitrate concentrations per sampling year for the period 2002 to 2017 for
each of the depth categories. The quality limit value of 50 mg nitrate per litre is also shown.
The data generally shows great variability in nitrate concentrations from one year to another in water
samples from individual monitoring stations. Especially in the shallowest groundwater (Figure 5.3 (A)),
absolute concentration changes of up to more than 80 mg nitrate per litre can be observed from one
sampling year to the other.
The average nitrate concentration remains below the quality limit value for each depth category throughout
the whole period 2002 until 2017, with the exception of 2010 for the deepest category. However, this value is
only based on a single monitoring station, as none of the others was sampled in 2010.
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2041207_0045.png
Figure 5.3: Nitrate concentration of the individual groundwater monitoring stations selected for the
reinforced monitoring, as well as the average nitrate concentrations per sampling year for the period
2002 to 2017 for each of the three depth categories of groundwater stations: (A) stations at less than 10
m depth; (B) stations at 10-20 m depth and (C) stations at 20 m depth and deeper below the surface. A
red dashed line at 50 mg nitrate per litre is inserted in each figure.
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2041207_0046.png
No clear trend in the average nitrate concentration can be observed over time for any of the three depth
categories. Due to the limited number of stations and samples per year, the annual average values are highly
influenced by the variability in nitrate concentration in the water sampled from some individual stations.
Table 5.1 shows the average nitrate concentration of all stations for each year in the period 2002 to 2017,
irrespective of their depth and the number of stations sampled (n) in the respective year that form the basis
of this calculation. The annual average nitrate concentration varies between 20.9 mg/L, as sampled in 2003
(n=11), and 41.9 mg/L in the groundwater samples from 2009 (n=13).
Table 5.1: Annual average nitrate concentration of all stations in reinforced monitoring in the period
2002-2017 and number of stations sampled
Sampling
year
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
Average nitrate
concentration [mg/L]
29.2
20.9
27.0
37.0
38.1
37.8
32.1
41.9
40.7
28.7
28.8
29.2
28.8
35.1
35.2
31.9
Number of sampled
stations (n)
11
11
10
18
18
18
16
13
13
18
23
18
23
21
22
26
When calculated across the entire period from 2002 to 2017, the (non-weighted) mean value of the annual
average concentrations is 32.6 mg/L. The data used to calculate the 2017 average concentration for
groundwater is based on the largest number of sampled stations so far (n=26). The 2017 average is slightly
lower than the mean value for the whole 2002-17 period. As all groundwater monitoring stations are being
sampled each year in the future, the basis for data analysis is expected to increase.
Surface water
Figure 5.4 shows the Nitrite- and Nitrate-Nitrogen concentration of the individual water course monitoring
stations selected for reinforced monitoring, as well as the average nitrate concentrations per sampling year
for the period 2002 to 2017 for each of the width categories. The quality limit value for groundwater of 50 mg
nitrate per litre, which corresponds to approximately 11.3 mg Nitrate-N per litre, is also shown.
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2041207_0047.png
Figure 5.4: Nitrite- +Nitrate-Nitrogen (N) concentration of the individual surface water monitoring
stations selected for reinforced monitoring, as well as the average nitrate concentrations per sampling
year for the period 2002 to 2017 for each of the three width categories (determined at sampling site):
(A) less than 5 m wide; (B) 5 to 10 m wide and (C) wider than 10 m. A red dashed line is inserted in each
figure at 11.3 mg Nitrate-N/L, corresponding to approx. 50 mg nitrate per litre.
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2041207_0048.png
At the level of the individual monitoring station, nitrite- + nitrate-nitrogen concentrations can vary
significantly from year to year mainly due to variation in amount and timing of precipitation. The
fluctuations in absolute concentration are up to 1.84 mg/L, corresponding to more than 8 mg nitrate per
litre. Nevertheless the year-to-year variations are not as pronounced as those seen in groundwater samples.
Generally the smallest water courses show greater variability (Figure 5.4 (A)).
For all water course categories it is, however, important to underline that the N transport is not determined
by the nitrogen concentration alone, but also by the water flow in the water course, which can significantly
vary due to the specific and local weather conditions of a given year. In low flow rate situations, nitrogen
levels may be relatively high while total N transport remains unchanged, and vice versa. As smaller water
courses typically have a smaller catchment area than rivers, variations in local weather conditions are
expected to have a greater impact on the nitrogen concentration in water sampled from the small water
course.
For all individual water course monitoring stations, nitrate-N concentrations remain well below the quality
limit for groundwater and drinking water throughout the whole period from 2002 to 2017. The highest
measured concentration among the stations was equivalent to approximately 35.6 mg nitrate per litre in the
year 2006 (see figure 5.4, (A)). Absolute concentrations tend to be higher in the smaller water courses than in
the larger ones, which is likely to be a result of nitrate being removed through natural processes along the
course of the water. Overall, the annual average for each category has been steadily decreasing over the last
10 years of the period shown.
Table 5.2 shows the annual average nitrite- and nitrate-N concentration in water sampled at all water course
stations
–
irrespective of their width
–
and the number of stations sampled in the respective year (n). The
annual average nitrite- + nitrate-N concentration has decreased from 4.4 mg/L in the early years of the
reported period (e.g. 2006, n=10) down to 3.3 mg/L in 2016 (n=11). In 2017, 9 additional water course
monitoring stations have been established, improving the data basis significantly. The average concentration
in 2017 for all water course stations was 3.0 mg/L.
Table 5.2: Annual average nitrite- + nitrate-N concentration in water sampled at all stations selected for
reinforced monitoring, as well as the number of stations sampled in each year
Sampling
year
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
Average nitrite- +nitrate-N
concentration
[mg/L]
4.1
3.8
4.4
4.0
4.4
4.1
3.9
3.9
3.8
3.3
3.4
3.4
3.3
3.3
3.3
3.0
Number of
sampled
stations (n)
5
5
7
7
10
10
10
10
10
11
11
11
11
11
11
20
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General discussion
It is important to highlight that the reinforced monitoring does not provide data that can be used to examine
any potential effect on water quality that might be the result of the use of the derogation. A range of other
fluctuating factors influence nutrient concentrations in the aquatic environment, and as such, it would not be
possible to identify or isolate such an effect.
Because the reinforced monitoring method is based on linking the locations of monitoring stations to fields
belonging to derogation farms in a two-dimensional way: The approach does not account for the actual
catchment area and subsurface water paths for the respective monitoring stations. Hence, it is only to a very
limited degree possible to get a picture of the effects of land use on surface water and groundwater quality. A
clearer picture would require a catchment-based approach, which takes into account that water quality in the
recipient water is affected by land use in the whole catchment area.
The present method does not include a reference group of monitoring stations that are not located in
proximity to fields belonging to derogation farms.
However, by including the data from this selected set of the surface water and groundwater monitoring
stations, the data basis for water quality in sandy areas is considerably enlarged in addition to the two sandy
catchments within the national agricultural catchment monitoring programme (see chapter 4), which has so
far formed the basis for reporting and provides comprehensive data on land use at farm-level.
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2041207_0050.png
6. Indicator system for application of phosphorus in Denmark in 2017
Hans Kjær & Irith Nør Madsen, Ministry of Environment and Food of Denmark
6.1 Introduction
In consultation with the European Commission, the Ministry of the Environment and Food has agreed that
Denmark must monitor the use of phosphorus (P) in organic fertilizer and commercial fertilizer, so that it is
ensured that the average use does not exceed the national phosphorus ceiling. The monitoring is based on
data from the fertilizer accounts, which is only available approximately one year after a planning period is
completed. The first planning period with limiting phosphorus use corresponding to the specific ceilings at
farm level was 2017/2018, and the fertilizer accounts from that period will not be available until April 2019.
Therefore, monitoring with quality-assured data will at the earliest be available for the first time in June
2019.
In the meantime, as a supplement to monitoring, it has therefore also been agreed that an "indicator system"
must established, where data from the NOVANA monitoring program in Agricultural Catchments (LOOP) in
combination with available data on livestock production and sales of fertilizer and other phosphorus sources
can provide an updated overview of the average amount of phosphorus used in Danish agriculture.
6.2 Results
Table 6.1 shows the phosphorus inputs as reported in the report "Landovervågningsoplande 2017" from
February 2019. The table shows an increase in the use of phosphorus in 2017. As a direct consequence of the
new P-ceiling regulation, in the coming years both the farm-specific P-ceilings and the national P-ceiling will
be decreased to a lower level, so the increase in the use of phosphorus is not expected to continue.
Table 6.1: P-input from different sources to Danish agricultural areas in 2012-2017
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
8
2017
Input of P (1,000 tons
P) from different
sources:
- Chemical fertilizer
- Animal manure
- Seed
- Sludge
- Waste from industry
- Deposition
Total input (1,000 tons
P)
Agricultural area
9
(1000 ha)
Average P application
(kg P/ha)
National P-ceiling (kg
P/ha)
8
11,800
45,800
1,000
2,400
3,100
264
64,400
2,641
24.4
11,300
45,300
1,000
2,400
3,100
263
63,400
2,625
24.1
13,000
46,100
1,000
2,400
3,100
262
65,900
2,617
25.2
13,300
46,100
1,000
2,400
3,100
263
66,200
2,656
24.9
13,300
44,300
1,000
2,400
3,100
263
64,400
2,598
24.8
[32.2]
10
20,800
43,000
1,000
2,400
3,100
259
70,500
2,587
27.3
35.2
Source, unless otherwise mentioned, is: Blicher-Mathiesen
et al.
(2019):
Landovervågningsoplande 2017.
Aarhus
University. Can be found here:
https://dce2.au.dk/pub/SR305.pdf
9
Source: SEGES (2019): Oversigt over landsforsøg 2018. Can be found here:
https://www.landbrugsinfo.dk/planteavl/landsforsoeg-og-resultater/oversigten-og-tabelbilaget/sider/pl_oversigten-
over-landsforsoegene-2018.aspx
10
This figure indicates the average phosphorus protection level in 2016 expressed as a theoretical P-ceiling, before the P-
ceilings were introduced, and is included for comparison.
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2041207_0051.png
In the dialogue with the EU Commission, it was expected that the development in livestock production
should be monitored via data from the CHR register, since Denmark previously prepared an annual status on
the size of livestock production in various catchments. This annual status is now done instead on the basis of
the fertilizer accounts, which is why the best data material on the development in livestock production is the
annual status of the livestock population, which is made by Statistics Denmark. The relevant data from
Statistics Denmark for 2016 and 2017 can be seen in Table 6.2.
Table 6.2: The development in the livestock production according to Statistics Denmark in 2016 and
11
2017
% of total livestock
units (LU) for key
livestock types
Cattle and dairy
cows (all kinds)
Pigs (all kinds)
Poultry (all
kinds)
Mink (all kinds
and other
furbearers)
Overall change
(weighted by
LU share)
48.6
43.1
3.7
Number of
animals 2016,
all farms
1,568,289
12,383,000
18,503,000
Number of
animals 2017,
all farms
1,545,417
12,307,667
21,483,698
% change in total
number of animals
2016-2017
-1.5
-0.6
16.1
4.6
3,268,984
3,429,472
4.9
-0.1
There is no indication that a larger amount of livestock manure will be produced in 2017 or that the average
phosphorus application in Denmark will exceed 25-28 kg P/ha. This level is well below the average
phosphorus ceiling of 35.2 kg P / ha in 2017 and as aforementioned, the national phosphorus ceiling will be
reduced continuously from 2018 onwards.
11
Data from Statistics Denmark. Can be found here:
https://www.dst.dk/da/Statistik/emner/erhvervslivets-
sektorer/landbrug-gartneri-og-skovbrug/husdyr
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7. Targeted catch crops scheme
Peter Byrial Dalsgaard, The Danish Agricultural Agency, Ministry of Environment and Food of Denmark,
December 2018
As part of the political agreement on the Food and Agricultural Package of December 2015, the reduction of
the nitrogen application standards has been removed and Danish government has introduced an
intermediate initiative to reduce N-losses through promoting the establishment of additional catch crops in
2017 and 2018. The scheme is designed to protect both groundwater bodies and coastal waters. The scheme
consists of a voluntary phase, were farmers apply for participation in the scheme, and a subsequent
mandatory requirement for catch crops if the voluntary scheme does not reach the predefined targets. The
latter requirement is uncompensated whereas the voluntary part is compensated with de minimis support.
After the deadline for application in the voluntary crop scheme, the farmer is bound by the commitment for
the voluntary catch crops as well as the obligatory requirement for additional catch crops and will no longer
be able to opt-out of any of these requirements without consequences. The voluntary catch crops must be
additional to the national mandatory requirement for catch crops on 10 or 14% of the farms crop base area,
and they cannot be established on the same area used for catch crops to meet the EFA requirement under
direct payments.
If the farmer opts out afterwards, or non-compliance is detected during control, the fertilizer norm for the
farm is reduced corresponding to the non-compliance with the voluntary and/or obligatory requirement and
according to a conversion factor between the nitrogen reduction effect of catch crops and the fertilizer norm
reduction for the planning period. This norm reduction will contribute to meeting the objectives of the
Nitrates Directive. Furthermore, if the reduced fertilizer norm is exceeded, he will be in breach of the
Fertilizer Act and will be sanctioned accordingly cf. Annex III point 1.3 of the Nitrates Directive. This is
similar to the current practice for the general catch crop requirements and additional catch crop
requirements for holdings using organic manure.
Results from 2017 and 2018
Prior to 2017 and 2018, respectively, the ministry calculated the need for further nitrates efforts for each of
the years, which can be expressed as the amount of additional catch crops required in the individual water
catchment areas, in terms of hectares and as a percentage of the crop base area. The calculation is based on
the estimated need for reductions in the nitrates contents of groundwater bodies and coastal waters, adjusted
by the estimated soil nitrates retention in the water catchment area.
In 2017 the need for further nitrates efforts was calculated to
137.560
ha. By the application deadline the
farmers had applied for a total of
144.220
ha of catch crops. Geographically, however, the catch crops were
not optimally placed in relation to the effort needed. Calculations revealed that an additional
3.253
ha catch
crops were needed in order to reach the target. A political decision was made to postpone this residual effort
until 2018.
In 2018 the need for further nitrates effort was calculated to
114.300
ha (including the postponed 3.253 ha).
By the application deadline the farmers had applied for a total of
105.000
ha of catch crops. It was
furthermore decided to postpone the effort related to aquaculture (fish farming, mariculture, etc.), as
extensions of existing aquaculture facilities had not been approved. Calculations revealed that an additional
3.000
ha catch crops were nevertheless needed in order to reach the target. This has been implemented as a
mandatory uncompensated requirement in 2018.
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8. Conclusions
Cattle holdings and controls on farm level
In 2016/2017 a total of 1,378 cattle holdings made use of the derogation. This corresponds to 3.9 % of the
total number of agricultural holdings in Denmark. The number of livestock units on these derogation cattle
holdings was 439,114 LU corresponding to 19.3 % of the total number of livestock units. The arable land
encompassed by the derogation in year 2016/2017 was 205,874 hectares corresponding to around 8.4 % of
the total arable area. Compared to the previous reporting period, in 2016/2017 there has been a decrease in
the number of farms, the number of hectares and the number of livestock units encompassed by the
derogation. The average number of livestock units per farm has increased over the years and this trend
continued in 2016/2017.
In January
–
February 2018, 90 inspections of compliance with the derogation management conditions were
carried out. 87 inspections were closed without remarks and in 3 inspections the holdings got remarks.
For the year 2015/2016 379 inspections (1.1 % of all Danish holdings) taking place at the holding were made
concerning compliance with the harmony rules (amount of livestock manure applied per hectare). 28 of the
inspected farms use the derogation. 24 of these inspections were closed without remarks, 2 holdings got a
fine and 2 holdings are still under investigation.
All 35,059 fertilizer accounts submitted in 2015/2016 (100 %) were automatically screened by the IT-system
according to normal procedure. Of these, 774 (2.2 %) were subject to administrative control. In all, 61 of
these holdings used the derogation. Of the inspections of derogation farms, 46 (75.4 %) were closed without
remarks, 6 (9.8 %) were closed with remarks and 9 (14.8 %) are still under investigation.
In total approximately, 7.0% of derogation farms were selected for physical inspections. More derogation
farms have in total been subjected to controls due to the aforementioned administrative controls. As holdings
are automatically selected -
based on a previously agreed set of “risk criteria”
- for both physical inspection
and administrative control, the Danish Agricultural Agency has no direct influence on the share of holdings
using the derogation that are inspected each year. Therefore, the share of derogation farms that have in some
way been subjected to controls varies from year to year.
Water quality
In 1998 the Action Plan for the Aquatic Environment (APAE) II was accepted by the EU Commission as the
Danish Nitrate Action Plan implementing the Nitrate Directive (1998-2003). In 2003, a final evaluation of
Action Plan II was performed, showing a reduction of 48% of the nitrate leaching from the agricultural
sector, fulfilling the reduction target set in 1987.
Further mitigation measures in the following Action Plans, APAE III from 2008 were implemented to reduce
N leaching from the root zone and the Green Growth Agreement from 2009, the first and second River Basin
Management Plan from 2014 and 2016, respectively as well as the Food and Agricultural Agreement in
December 2015 suggests measures or reductions target for N load to marine areas in order to fulfil the targets
in the Water Framework Directive.
Modelling
of the nitrate leaching from the root zone at the national level showed an average concentration
of 75-90 mg NO
3
l
-1
for cattle holdings using 170-230 kg organic manure N in 2017.
Measured
average flow-weighted nitrate concentration in root zone water at three to four specific sites that
on average received 186-266 kg organic manure N per hectare varied between 41-120 mg NO
3
l
-1
for the
hydrologic years in the period 2012/13-2016/17.
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In the upper oxic groundwater (1.5-5.0 m), nitrate concentrations are lower than in the root zone water,
indicating that nitrate reduction occurs in the aquifer sediment between the bottom of the root zone and the
uppermost groundwater. In loamy catchments the measured nitrate concentration in the upper oxic
groundwater decreased from 40-47 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the five year period 1990/91-1994/95 to 27-34 mg NO
3
l
-1
in
the five year period 2011/12-2015/16. On sandy catchments the nitrate concentration decreased from 88-110
mg NO
3
l
-1
in the five year period 1990/91-1994/95 to 53-71 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the five year period 2011/12-
2015/16.
The general conclusions to be drawn on trend in measured nitrate concentrations in root
zone water and upper oxic ground from the Agricultural Catchment Monitoring Programme
are that:
Nitrate concentrations in root zone soil water (1.0 m below soil surface) have decreased steadily from
1990/01 to 2015/16 but the concentration increased in 2016/17. On loamy catchments the measured
nitrate concentration decreased from 61-155 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the five year period 1990/91-1994/95 to 37-66
mg NO
3
l
-1
in the five year period 2011/12-2015/16, but increased in 2016/17 to 101 mg NO
3
l
-1
. On sandy
catchments the nitrate concentration was 73-207 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the five year period 1990/91-1994/95
and decreased to 54-73 mg NO
3
l
-1
in the five year period 2011/12-2015/16 but increased to 99 mg NO
3
l
-1
in 2016/17.
Nitrate concentrations in the upper oxic groundwater (1.5-5.0 m below soil surface) decreased to a level
well below the limit of 50 mg NO
3
l
-1
for loamy catchments and to a level between 53 and 73 mg NO3 l
-1
for the two sandy catchments in the period 2012/13-2016/17.
Targeted catch crops
For the year 2017 a total of app. 144.ooo ha voluntary targeted catch crops were established, and a further
effort of 3.250 ha were postponed to 2018. In 2018 a total of app. 105.000 ha voluntary catch crops were
established, and in addition an obligatory effort of app. 3.000 ha has been applied (uncompensated).
The reinforced monitoring
The reinforced monitoring does not provide data that can be used to examine any potential effect on water
quality that might be the result of the use of the derogation. A range of other fluctuating factors than
proximity to a derogation farm influence nutrient concentrations in the aquatic environment. However, by
including the data from the selected set of the surface water and groundwater monitoring stations, the data
basis for water quality in sandy areas is considerably enlarged. The total number of farms encompassed by
the reinforced monitoring corresponds to approximately 3.5% of all holdings that make use of the
derogation.
The phosphorus indicator system
There has been an increase in the use of phosphorus in 2017. As a direct consequence of the new P-ceiling
regulation, in the coming years both the farm-specific P-ceilings and the national P-ceiling will be decreased
to a lower level, so the increase in the use of phosphorus is not expected to continue.
There is no indication that a larger amount of livestock manure will be produced in 2017 or that the average
phosphorus application in Denmark will exceed 25-28 kg P/ha. This level is well below the average
phosphorus ceiling of 35.2 kg P / ha in 2017.
54