A government inquiry has recognised the damage being caused by a “deadly and overlooked” hidden pollutant, according to the Sustainable Nitrogen Alliance

The coalition of health, nature, climate and animal welfare organisations has welcomed a “groundbreaking” House of Lords report which echoes the group’s calls for a holistic national nitrogen strategy.

The report, published today (Thursday 24 July), follows an inquiry into nitrogen by the House of Lords Environment and Climate Change Committee.

It recognises that nitrogen pollution in all its forms is having devastating impacts on public health, nature, climate change and the farming economy - and highlights how, in England, successive governments have failed to tackle this, largely due to ineffective and siloed working.
According to the Sustainable Nitrogen Alliance, nitrogen has never had the political focus that it deserves despite the widespread damage it is causing - but today’s report could mark an end to this failure. 

The alliance is calling on the government to heed the committee’s warnings and act on the growing consensus that a holistic nitrogen strategy spanning all sectors is essential to truly tackle the wide ranging impacts.

Soil Association’s Ellie Roxburgh, who convenes the Sustainable Nitrogen Alliance, said:  “For too long nitrogen pollution and its devastating environmental, human health and economic impacts has been overlooked, so it is great to see this groundbreaking report from the House of Lords. We’re delighted to see the call for a national nitrogen strategy underpinned by a balance sheet that maps all routes of nitrogen usage, waste and pollution, which the SNA has long been calling for. This must cover all relevant sectors, link up to statutory targets and focus on the huge amount of nitrogen being wasted in our farming system.“ 

The report comes in the same week that the Independent Water Commission's final report sets out recommendations for reform to improve the water sector regulatory system. The alliance calls for farming to receive the same attention, given that synthetic fertilisers and intensive livestock farming are among the biggest drivers of nitrogen pollution in our rivers and water bodies.

On average, only about half of the synthetic nitrogen fertiliser applied to crops is taken up and used by the plants, meaning an estimated £420 million is lost each year to the environment. For farmers often working close to the profit margin, this is a devastating economic loss, says the alliance.
 
However, the alliance would like to recognise the government's firm action on sewage pollution this year, as well as announcements on improving agricultural pollution regulations and an uplift in advice-led farm inspections. * Evidence given in the nitrogen inquiry *
The inquiry heard from a wide range of witnesses, including the Environment Agency, Natural England and the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP). 
 
It was clear from these sessions that government agencies want to see greater action and are eager to do more:
    - Dame Glenys Stacey said the Office for Environmental Protection would welcome a National Nitrogen Strategy as there is a strong case for it. She reported she had seen missed opportunities for join-up. The Environment Improvement Plan has statutory targets that should act as the overarching structure that policy should be driven by.
    - Tony Juniper, from Natural England, called for nitrogen budgets at the catchment level to reduce excess nitrogen use. Nitrogen budgets are used to assess how much nitrogen an area can manage before ecological damage is caused to rivers and surrounding sensitive habitats.
    - Helen Wakeham, Director for Water at the Environment Agency, suggested that an integrated nitrogen strategy would be a magic wand to give an overview of the issues relating to nitrogen management. She also recommended the use of a nitrogen balance sheet to demonstrate how much nitrogen is entering the system and coming into the UK through imports.
    - Daniel Zeichner and Emma Hardy, the ministers for Farming and Water, respectively, spoke to Committee members about planned progress to bring together currently siloed policy strands and opportunities under the Circular Economy strategy to turn nitrogen waste from livestock, wastewater and households into renewable fertilisers for farmers.