ZSA welcomes the supported changes to the Protection Zones Law

The association "Farmers' Parliament" welcomes the amendments to the Protection Zones Law prepared by the Ministry of Agriculture (MA) on Tuesday, February 23, supported by the government, which envisage changing the current procedure with a 10-meter protection zone, stipulating the creation of 2-meter vegetation buffer zones along surface water bodies.

The current procedure, which has been in force since 1997, establishes a 10 m buffer zone along watercourses, in which farmers may cultivate the land and sow crops, but may not fertilize them or use plant protection products. However, the existing procedure does not ensure the planned environmental protection goals and is difficult to control. Therefore, after long discussions between agricultural and environmental experts, an agreement has been reached on amendments to the law, which provide for the establishment of a 2 m buffer zone of grasslands along water bodies and a 1 m buffer zone along drainage ditches.

The amendments provide for, starting from January 1, 2017, to leave a two-meter-wide strip of uncultivated land along surface water bodies, and starting from January 1, 2018 – a one-meter-wide strip along drainage ditches of the same property and shared use (including shared use of municipal significance).

The changes stipulate that farmers will not be allowed to grow agricultural crops within the buffer zone, as well as use fertilizers and pesticides. At the same time, farmers will be obliged to cultivate grassland in the 2 m wide buffer zones, contributing to the improvement of water quality. On the one hand, environmental requirements will be strengthened, on the other hand, agricultural production will be promoted.

“Farmers are increasingly using modern environmentally friendly technologies to meet regulatory requirements and receive support payments. It should also be noted that the establishment of any type of buffer zones and their observance is associated with imposing a certain burden on the use of agricultural land, and this significantly reduces the area that can be used productively. The adoption of these amendments is the result of long-term discussions between agricultural and environmental experts, and we very much hope that both the environment and farmers will benefit in the long term,” Maira Dzlezkalēja-Burmistre, Deputy Chairwoman of the Latvian Association of Lawyers, comments on the decision.

We remind you that the amendments to the Protection Zones Law will enter into force after their approval by the Saeima in three readings.