On 26 June, the Dutch minority government presented a package of measures aimed at reducing nitrogen emissions. The main elements include:
- Farmers must cut ammonia emissions by 42–46 per cent by 2035, compared with 2019 levels. Since 2019, emissions have already fallen by 18 per cent.
- Industry and the transport sector must halve their nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions.
- An additional 20 per cent reduction in nitrogen emissions is required within buffer zones around Natura 2000 sites.A 1,000-metre restriction zone will be established around the 15 most heavily affected Natura 2000 areas, and a 500-metre zone around a further 85 protected areas.
- Farmers within these zones will be required to adopt low-emission technologies, reduce livestock numbers, relocate, or cease farming altogether.
- If voluntary measures prove insufficient, a mandatory guarantee mechanism” will be triggered, requiring compulsory reductions in livestock numbers.
- The current threshold of 0.005 mol nitrogen deposition per hectare per year will remain in place until 2027, although provinces that have already increased the threshold may continue to apply the higher limit.
The package is the government's latest attempt to comply with a 2019 ruling by the Dutch Council of State, which found that the country's nitrogen policy did not comply with European nature protection rules. The ruling effectively brought permits for housing and infrastructure projects to a standstill.
The proposals must now be approved by parliament and the Senate before being translated into legislation. If the process proceeds as planned, the first bills are expected to be introduced in parliament in October.
Source: DutchNews, 26 June 2026
https://www.dutchnews.nl/2026/06/dutch-cabinet-agrees-plan-to-slash-nitrogen-pollution-levels/
