Kildare County Council Advises Farmers on the Application of Organic and Chemical Fertilisers on Farmland
30th April 2025: Kildare County Council would like to remind farmers of their obligations regarding the application of organic and chemical fertilisers on farmland, in order to protect water quality and the environment. Agriculture has been identified as one of the main activities to negatively impact and place significant pressure on water quality. The EU Nitrate Directive and the European Union (Good Agricultural Practices for the Protection of Waters) Regulations, 2022 (GAP Regulations) as amended, provide a statutory basis for ensuring good agricultural practices are in place, to protect water quality within the county.
Landspreading
Kildare County Council regulates landspreading activities within the county. The EU GAP Regulations detail the requirements regarding the collection, storage, management and landspreading of farmyard manure, organic fertiliser and soiled water produced on a farm holding. For land spreading activities, the regulations detail requirements on the application of organic fertiliser, weather conditions, and the periods of the year when land spreading is prohibited.
Organic and chemical fertilisers or soiled water shall NOT be applied to land:
- By use of an umbilical system with an upward-facing splash-plate.
- By use of a tanker with an upward-facing splash-plate.
- By use of a sludge irrigator mounted on a tanker
- From a road or passageway adjacent to the land, irrespective of whether the road or passageway is within or outside the cartilage of the holding.
Organic and chemical fertilisers or soiled water shall NOT be applied to land where:
- The land is waterlogged.
- The land is flooded or likely to flood.
- The land is snow covered or frozen.
- Heavy rain is forecast within 48 hours (Farmers are advised to use Met Éireann forecasts).
- The ground slopes steeply and there is a risk of water pollution having regard to factors such as surface run-off pathways, the presence of land drains, the absence of hedgerows to mitigate surface run-off, soil condition, and ground cover.
The spreading of soiled water is prohibited between 1st December and 31st December 2025
Prohibited periods for spreading fertilisers to land are:
- Chemical Fertiliser (Nitrogen & Phosphorous) - 15th September 2025 to 26th January 2026
- Organic Fertiliser (other than Farmyard Manure) – 1st October 2025 to 12th January 2026
- Farmyard Manure – 1st November 2025 to 12th January 2026
No sewage sludge can be spread in County Kildare without the prior submission of a Nutrient Management Plan (NMP), prepared by a recognised Agricultural Consultant. The timeframe for assessing all NMP’S is 4 weeks.
Buffer Zones for spreading organic and chemical fertilisers:
200m Any water supply source providing 100m3 or more of water per day, or serving 500 or more people
100m Any water supply source providing 10m3 or more of water per day, or serving 50 or more people
25m Any other water supply for human consumption
20m Lake shoreline
10m Any surface watercourse where the slope towards the watercourse exceeds 10%
5m* Any other surface waters
* This 5 metre buffer zone is increased to 10 metres for a period of two weeks preceding and two weeks following the periods when application of fertilisers to land is prohibited as set out in Schedule 4 of the Regulations.
2m Chemical fertilisers must not be spread within 2m of surface waters
Buffer Zones applicable when farmyard manure is stored in a field:
250m Any water supply source providing 100m3 or more of water per day, or serving 500 or more people
250m Any water supply source providing 10m3 or more of water per day, or serving 50 or more people
50m Any other water supply for human consumption
20m Lake shoreline
20m Any other surface waters
The storage period for livestock manure in Co. Kildare is 16 weeks.
For further details on the application of organic and chemical fertilisers on farmland, visit:
- Kildare County Council’s website: https://kildarecoco.ie/AllServices/Environment/Water/FarmingandtheEnvironment/
- Teagasc website at:
- https://www.teagasc.ie/environment/water-quality/farming-for-water-quality-assap/improving-my-water-quality/nutrient-and-fertiliser-management/
- https://www.teagasc.ie/environment/water-quality/farming-for-water-quality-assap/assap-factsheets/organic-fertiliser-management/
- https://www.teagasc.ie/news--events/daily/grassland/fertiliser-spreading-dates.php
Alternatively, contact the Environment Section, Kildare County Council on 045-980588 or via email at environwastewater@kildarecoco.ie
