S.I. No. 588/2025 - European Union (Good Agricultural Practice for Protection of Waters) Regulations 2025

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 12th December, 2025.

CONTENTS

PART 1
PRELIMINARY
ARTICLE
1. Citation, commencement and application
2. Purpose of Regulations
3. Revocations
4. Interpretation
PART 2
FARMYARD MANAGEMENT
5. Minimisation of soiled water and application of soiled water to land
6. Collection and holding of certain substances
7. Provision and management of storage facilities
8. General obligations as to capacity of storage facilities
9. Capacity of storage facilities for effluents and soiled water
10. Capacity of storage facilities for pig manure
11. Capacity of storage facilities for poultry manure
12. Capacity of storage facilities for manure from deer, goats, horses and sheep
13. Capacity of storage facilities for manure from cattle
14. Reduced storage capacity in certain circumstances
PART 3
NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT
15. Interpretation, commencement etc.
16. Duty of occupier in relation to nutrient management
17. Requirements for milk producers and arable land in relation to nutrient management
PART 4
PREVENTION OF WATER POLLUTION FROM FERTILISERS AND CERTAIN ACTIVITIES
18. Distances from a water body and other issues
19. Requirements as to manner of application of fertilisers, soiled water etc.
20. Periods when application of fertilisers is prohibited
21. Limits on the amount of livestock manure to be applied
22. Ploughing and the use of non-selective herbicides
PART 5
GENERAL
23. General duty of occupier
24. Keeping of records by occupier
25. False or misleading information
26. Authorised person
27. Offences and related matters
PART 6
FUNCTIONS OF PUBLIC AUTHORITIES
28. Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine
29. Making and review of action programme by the Minister
30. Agency
31. Local authorities
32. Compliance with Data Protection Acts
33. Certificate in relation to nutrient content of fertiliser
34. Exemption for exceptional circumstances for research
SCHEDULE 1
SOIL TEST
SCHEDULE 2
CRITERIA AS TO STORAGE CAPACITY AND NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT
SCHEDULE 3
STORAGE PERIODS FOR LIVESTOCK MANURE
SCHEDULE 4
PERIODS WHEN APPLICATION OF FERTILISERS TO LAND IS PROHIBITED

PART 1 PRELIMINARY

Citation, commencement and application

1.

• (b) These Regulations shall apply to all holdings in the State.

• (c) These Regulations shall apply to all movements of organic fertilisers and applications of organic and inorganic fertiliser on holdings in the State.

• (d) These Regulations shall come into effect on 1 January 2026.

Purpose of Regulations

2.

Revocations

3.

Interpretation

4.

“Act of 1992” means the Environmental Protection Agency Act, 1992 (No. 7 of 1992);

“Agency” means the Environmental Protection Agency established under section 19 of the Act of 1992;

“agriculture” includes the breeding, keeping and sale of livestock (including cattle, horses, pigs, poultry, sheep and any animal kept for the production of food, wool, or skins), the making and storage of silage, the cultivation of land, and the growing of crops (including agroforestry and horticultural crops);

“agroforestry” is a land-use system where trees are deliberately integrated into agricultural land management units;

“application to land”, in relation to fertiliser, means the addition of fertiliser to land whether by spreading on the surface of the land, injection into the land, placing below the surface of the land or mixing with the surface layers of the land but does not include the direct deposition of manure to land by animals;

“aquifer” means a subsurface layer or layers of rock or other geological strata of sufficient porosity and permeability to allow either a significant flow of groundwater or the abstraction of significant quantities of groundwater;

“arable land” means “land that is generally under a system of crop rotation and either actively used for growing crops or is temporarily unused (fallow) and remains available for tillage and vegetable production;

“bankfull” means the water level at which point a water body is at the top of its banks and any further rise in water levels would result in it moving into the flood plain;

“biochemical oxygen demand” for the purposes of sub-article (2)(c)(i) means a 5 day biochemical oxygen demand test done in accordance with method ISO 5815-1:2003, International Organisation for Standardization, or any update of that method;

“cereal crop” means a type of grass with grains that can be eaten or used to make food (including barley, wheat, oats, triticale and rye);

“chemical fertiliser” means any fertiliser that is manufactured by an industrial process;

“commonage” means a land parcel which is held by two or more persons in specified shares or jointly and originally purchased from the Irish Land Commission under the Land Purchase Acts, including land over which two or more persons have grazing rights or the right to take turf;

“concentrate feedstuff” means livestock feed containing a high density of total digestible nutrients and are low in crude fibre content (less than 18% of dry matter) and are either feed materials in the raw or milled forms as individual feeds (referred to as straights); or a mixture of two or more feed materials blended or formulated into balanced rations for particular production purposes (referred to as compound feeds);

“crops grown under cover” means crops grown in greenhouses or cultivations grown under cover (e.g. in polytunnels);

“dairy cow” is any bovine animal that has calved and has been maintained on the holding for the purposes of producing milk for human consumption;

“dry matter” for the purposes of sub-article (2)(b)(ii) means a test for total solids done in accordance with method F, American Public Health Association, 21st Edition, 2005, or any update of that method;

“eligible area” in relation to a holding and the grassland stocking rate, means the eligible area for nutrients of the holding or the grassland as appropriate excluding areas under farm roads, paths, buildings, farmyards, woods, dense scrub, rivers, streams, ponds, lakes, sandpits, quarries, expanses of bare rock, areas of bogland not grazed, areas fenced off and not used for production, inaccessible areas and areas of forestry (including Christmas trees), or areas required to be totally destocked under a Commonage Framework Plan. In the event that such an application was made, the eligible area for nutrients is the lesser of the reference area or the claimed area for each Land Parcel Identification System (LPIS) parcel as submitted to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine for Direct Payments for the year in question;

“farmyard manure” means a mixture of bedding material and animal excreta in solid form arising from the housing of cattle, sheep and other livestock excluding poultry;

“fertiliser” means any substance containing nitrogen, or phosphorus, or a nitrogen compound or phosphorus compound utilised on land to enhance growth of vegetation and may include livestock manure, the residues from fish farms and sludges including sewage sludge;

“georeference” in the context of a soil sample means having Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates linked to that soil sample;

“grass” means permanent grassland or temporary grassland (temporary implying leys of less than five years);

“grassland area” means the eligible area under the relevant crops as published by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine;

“grassland farms” means holdings where 80% or more of the agricultural area available for manure application is grass;

“grassland stocking rate” means the total nitrogen produced by grazing livestock on the holding prior to exports, across the entire eligible grassland area. In the event that such an application was made, this is the grassland area as submitted to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine for Direct Payments for the year in question;

“grazing livestock” means cattle (with the exclusion of veal calves), sheep, deer, goats and horses;

“groundwater” means all water that is below the surface of the ground in the saturation zone and in direct contact with the ground or subsoil;

“harvesting of cereals, beans or oilseed rape” means the gathering of the grain/oilseed rape/beans from the field;

“heavy rain” means rainfall meeting the criteria for yellow, orange or red rainfall warnings issued by Met Éireann;

“hedgerow” means a line of shrubs and/or tree species, planted and maintained in such a way as to form a barrier of sufficient width to control animals or to mark the boundary of an area of land. Hedgerows can range from neatly trimmed lines of dense shrub and/or briars and tree species, which generally form a stock proof barrier, to a line of individual mature trees with no stock proofing properties and all states in between;

“holding” means an agricultural production unit and, in relation to an occupier, means all the agricultural production units managed by that occupier;

“intersecting watercourse” means where a land parcel is sloped towards a watercourse and any surface water run-off would drain into that watercourse;

“late harvested crops” includes vegetable crops harvested after 15 September as well as fodder beet, sugar beet, main crop potatoes and maize excluding cereal crops and beans;

“legal entity” means an individual, partnership, company, or organisation that has legal rights and obligations;

“livestock” means all animals kept for use or profit (including cattle, horses, pigs, poultry, sheep and includes any animal kept for the production of food, wool or skins);

“livestock manure” means waste products excreted by livestock or a mixture of litter and waste products excreted by livestock, even in processed form;

“local authority” means a city council or county council within the meaning of the Local Government Act, 2001 (No. 37 of 2001);

“local authority shared service” means common or combined services provided to more than one local authority, the provision of which (to the local authorities concerned) enables, assists or facilitates the carrying out of any administrative task or process necessary for or incidental to the performance of a function assigned under these regulations to local authorities;

“low emission slurry spreading equipment” means trailing hose, trailing shoe or shallow injection systems which have not been modified;

“Met Éireann” means Ireland’s national meteorological service;

“milking platform” means the grassland block on the holding within a 3km radius of an active milking parlour that is accessible for grazing by a dairy cow(s) at any stage during the year;

“milk producer” means a holding where one or more dairy cows are maintained for the purpose of producing milk for human consumption;

“the Minister” means the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage;

“Moore Park St Jilles Grass Growth Model (MoST)” means a grass growth model that, can predict grass growth, grass nitrogen content and leaching at the paddock scale for Irish grazing and meteorological conditions;

“National Fertiliser Database” means the database, established by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, containing the registers of Fertiliser Economic Operators and Professional Fertiliser End Users and the prescribed data submitted by both;

“new dairy entrant” means a dairy producing herd where no milk was produced for human consumption in the preceding calendar year;

“new entrant” means a natural person who has been assigned a herd number in the current or previous calendar year, and who has not previously held, nor has a beneficial interest in a herd number;

“Nitrates Directive” means Council Directive 91/676/EEC of 12 December 1991 concerning the protection of waters against pollution caused by nitrates from agricultural sources;

“nutrient exporter” means an occupier or a legal entity, or a person who takes control of, and exports organic fertilisers to a holding for application to land;

“occupier”, in relation to a holding, includes the owner, a lessee, that is a natural person or legal entity entitled to occupy the holding or any other natural person or legal entity who is for the time being, in control of the holding;

“organic fertiliser” means any fertiliser other than chemical fertiliser and includes livestock manure, dungstead manure, farmyard manure, slurry, soiled water, silage effluent, spent mushroom compost, non-farm organic substances such as sewage sludge, industrial by-products and sludges and residues from fish farms;

“parcel” means an individual field or a group of fields, homogeneous regarding cropping, soil type and fertilisation practices;

“ploughing” means inversion of soil to a depth of 15 – 30cm and excludes shallow cultivation;

“poaching” is the damage that may be done to land and its underlying soil structure arising from the presence of livestock where the underlying risk may cause the transport of sediment and/or nutrients to watercourses;

“relevant local authority” means the local authority in whose administrative area a farm holding or part of a farm holding is situated;

“river basin district” means a river basin district established by the European Communities (Water Policy) Regulations, 2003 ( S.I. No. 722 of 2003 ) or any amendment thereof in relation to the establishment of river basin districts;

“sewage sludge” means—

• (a) residual sludge from sewage plants treating domestic or urban waste waters and from other sewage plants treating waste waters of a composition similar to domestic and urban waste waters, whether or not it has been treated to form biosolids or sludge cake through treatment processes such as dewatering, composting, advanced digestion, thermal drying or lime stabilization;

• (b) residual sludge from domestic wastewater treatment systems, septic tanks and other similar installations for the treatment of sewage, whether or not it has been treated to form biosolids or sludge cake through treatment processes such as dewatering, composting, advanced digestion, thermal drying or lime stabilization;

• (c) residual sludge from sewage plants other than those referred to in paragraphs (i) and (ii) ) whether or not it has been treated to form biosolids or sludge cake through treatment processes such as dewatering, composting, advanced digestion, thermal drying or lime stabilization;

“shallow cultivation” means any soil disturbance, completed at a shallow depth, increasing soil–seed contact that will promote seed germination;

“sloping steeply” means ground which has an average incline of 20% or more in the case of grassland or 15% or more in the case of other land;

“slurry” includes—

• (a) excreta produced by livestock while in a building or yard, and

• (b) a mixture of such excreta with rainwater, washings or other extraneous material or any combination of these, of a consistency that allows it to be pumped or discharged by gravity at any stage in the handling process but does not include soiled water;

“soil consolidation” means rolling soil to increase soil–seed contact and promote seed germination;

“soil test” means a soil sample taken in accordance with the soil sampling procedure set out in Schedule 1 and analysed in accordance with that Schedule, at a laboratory that meets the requirements of the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for this purpose;

“soiled water” has the meaning assigned by sub-article (2);

“stocking rate alterations” means situations where the holdings previous calendar year stocking rate is not representative due to factors outside of the holder’s control, including mandatory de-stocking and herd movement restrictions arising from bovine diseases controls;

“Tailte Éireann” means Tailte Éireann established by the Tailte Éireann Act 2022 (No. 50 of 2022);

“Teagasc” means the Agriculture and Food Development Authority established in September 1988 under the Agriculture (Research, Training and Advice) Act, 1988 ;

“tidal waters” includes the sea and any estuary up to a high water mark medium tide and any enclosed dock adjoining tidal waters;

“Uisce Éireann” means Ireland’s national regulated water utility;

“water supplier” means any person or organization supplying water for human consumption, other than Uisce Éireann;

“waters” includes—

• (a) any (or any part of any) river, stream, lake, canal, reservoir, aquifer, pond, watercourse, or other inland waters, whether natural or artificial,

• (b) any tidal waters, and

• (c) where the context permits, any beach, river bank and salt marsh or other area which is contiguous to anything mentioned in paragraph (a) or (b), and the channel or bed of anything mentioned in paragraph (a) which is for the time being dry, but does not include a sewer;

“watercourse” means any body of water that is marked on a modern 1:5,000 scale Tailte Éireann map, and any feature where water collects or flows permanently, but does not include a sewer;

“waterlogged ground” means ground that is saturated with water such that any further addition will lead, or is likely to lead, to surface run-off;

and cognate words shall be construed accordingly;

• (2)

  • (a) In these Regulations “soiled water” includes, subject to this sub- article, water from concreted areas, hard standing areas, holding areas for livestock and other farmyard areas where such water is contaminated by contact with any of the following—

    • (i) livestock faeces or urine or silage effluent or animal feed,

    • (ii) chemical fertilisers,

  • (b) Notwithstanding sub-paragraph (a), soiled water may also include water that has become contaminated through it being used in the washing of a milking parlour(s), livestock handling area(s), livestock handling equipment, transport vehicles and trailers, other farm equipment, mushroom houses, vegetables, potatoes, fodder beet or sugar beet.

  • (c) In these Regulations, “soiled water” does not include any liquid where such liquid has either—

    • (i) a biochemical oxygen demand exceeding 2,500 mg per litre, or

    • (ii) a dry matter content exceeding 1% (10 g/L),

  • (d) For the purposes of these Regulations, soiled water which is stored together with slurry is deemed to be slurry.

• (3) In these Regulations a reference to—

  • (a) an Article, Part or Schedule which is not otherwise identified is a reference to an Article, Part or Schedule of these Regulations,

  • (b) a sub-article or paragraph which is not otherwise identified is a reference to a sub-article or paragraph of the provision in which the reference occurs, and

  • (c) a period between a specified day in a month and a specified day in another month means the period commencing on the first-mentioned day in any year and ending on the second-mentioned day which first occurs after the first-mentioned day.

• (4) In these Regulations a footnote to a table in Schedule 2 shall be deemed to form part of the table.

PART 2 FARMYARD MANAGEMENT

Minimisation of soiled water and application of soiled water to land

5.

• (2) Without prejudice to the generality of sub-article (1), an occupier of a holding shall ensure, as far as is practicable, that—

• (a) clean water from roofs and unsoiled paved areas and that flowing from higher ground on to the farmyard is diverted away from soiled yard areas and prevented from entering storage facilities for livestock manure and other organic fertilisers, soiled water, and effluents from dungsteads, farmyard manure pits, silage pits or silage clamps, and

• (b) rainwater gutters and downpipes where required for the purposes of paragraph (a) are maintained in good working condition.

• (3) The spreading of soiled water to land from milk producers is prohibited between 1 December and 31 December.

Collection and holding of certain substances

6.

• (2) The occupier of a holding shall not cause or permit the entry to waters of any of the substances specified in sub-article (1).

Provision and management of storage facilities

7.

• (2) Storage facilities being provided on a holding on or after 31 March 2009 shall—

• (a) be designed, sited, constructed, maintained and managed so as to prevent run-off or seepage, directly or indirectly, into groundwater or surface water of a substance specified in sub- article (1), and

• (b) comply with such construction specifications for those facilities as may be approved from time to time by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

• (3) Storage facilities other than those referred to in sub-article (2) shall be of such construction and design and shall be maintained and managed in such a manner so as to comply with the requirements of sub-article (1) and Article 6(2).

• (4) In this article “storage facilities” includes out-wintering pads, earthen- lined stores, integrated constructed wetlands and any other system used for the holding or treatment of livestock manure or other organic fertilisers.

General obligations as to capacity of storage facilities

8.

• (2) For the purposes of sub-article (1) an occupier shall ensure to have the storage capacity likely to be required during periods of adverse weather conditions when, due to extended periods of wet weather, frozen ground or otherwise, the application to land of livestock manure or soiled water is precluded.

• (3) For the purposes of Articles 8 to 14, the capacity of storage facilities on a holding shall be disregarded insofar as the occupier does not have exclusive use of those facilities.

• (4) For the purposes of Articles 10 to 14 the capacity of facilities required in accordance with these Regulations for the storage of manure from livestock of the type specified in Tables 1, 2 or 4 of Schedule 2 shall be determined by reference to the criteria set out in the relevant table and the rainfall criteria set out in Table 5 of that schedule and shall include capacity for the storage for such period as may be necessary for compliance with these Regulations of rainwater, soiled water or other extraneous water which enters or is likely to enter the facilities.

• (5) Subject to sub-article (6), slurry produced on the holding during the previous winter must be applied to land or exported from the holding by 30 September.

• (6) Notwithstanding sub-article (5), slurry may be spread between 1 and 15 October if permitted by the Minister, following consultation with the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine and in accordance with the following specified scientific criteria to deal with exceptional circumstances—

• (a) exceptional weather conditions leading up to the closed period must be demonstrated,

• (b) the Moore Park St Jilles Grass Growth Model (MoST) must demonstrate sufficient growth for nutrient uptake,

• (c) no heavy rain is forecast, and

• (d) consideration may also be given to the situation pertaining on farms.

Capacity of storage facilities for effluents and soiled water

9.

• (a) effluent produced by ensiled forage and other crops shall equal or exceed the capacity specified in Table 6 of Schedule 2,

• (b) For non-milk producers, soiled water storage capacity shall equal or exceed the capacity required to store all soiled water likely to arise on the holding during a period of 10 days if the soiled water storage facilities were constructed before 1 January 2015,

• (c) For non-milk producers, soiled water storage capacity shall equal or exceed the capacity required to store all soiled water likely to arise on the holding during a period of 15 days if the soiled water storage facilities were constructed on or after 1 January 2015,

• (d) With effect from 1 October 2028 the storage capacity requirement set in sub-paragraph (c) will apply to all non-milk producers.

• (e) For milk producers with soiled water storage facilities constructed before 1 January 2015 the minimum storage capacity for soiled water shall be the greatest of the volume of soiled water produced per cow being milked as set out in Table 3 of Schedule 2, based on—

• (i) the maximum number of cows being milked over a 10-day period in October, or

• (ii) the maximum number of cows being milked over a 10-day period in November, or

• (iii) the number of cows being milked every day in December, or

• (iv) the maximum number of cows being milked over a 10-day period in January.

• (f) For milk producers with soiled water storage facilities constructed on or after 1 January 2015 the minimum storage capacity for soiled water shall be the greatest of the volume of soiled water produced per cow being milked as set out in Table 3 of Schedule 2 based on—

• (i) the maximum number of cows being milked over a 15-day period in October, or

• (ii) the maximum number of cows being milked over a 15-day period in November, or

• (iii) the number of cows being milked every day in December, or

• (iv) the maximum number of cows being milked over a 15-day period in January.

• (g) Notwithstanding point (e) above, with effect from 1 October 2028 the storage capacity requirement set out at point (f) above will apply to all milk producers.

Capacity of storage facilities for pig manure

10.

• (2) The period specified in Schedule 3 shall, in substitution for that prescribed by sub-article (1), apply in relation to livestock manure produced by pigs on a holding where all the following conditions are met—

• (a) the number of pigs on the holding does not at any time exceed one hundred pigs, and

• (b) the holding comprises a sufficient area of land for the application in accordance with these Regulations of all livestock manure produced on the holding.

Capacity of storage facilities for poultry manure

11.

• (2) The period specified in Schedule 3 shall, in substitution for that prescribed by sub-article (1), apply in relation to livestock manure produced by poultry on a holding where all the following conditions are met—

• (a) tillage or grassland farming is carried out on the holding,

• (b) the number of poultry places on the holding does not exceed 2,000 places, and

• (c) the holding comprises a sufficient area of land for the application in accordance with these Regulations of all livestock manure produced on the holding.

Capacity of storage facilities for manure from deer, goats, horses and sheep

12.

Capacity of storage facilities for manure from cattle

13.

Reduced storage capacity in certain circumstances

14.

• (a) the occupier of the holding has a written contract providing exclusive access to adequate alternative storage capacity located outside the holding,

• (b) the occupier has a written contract for access to a treatment facility for livestock manure, or

• (c) the occupier has a written contract for the transfer of the manure to a person registered and permitted under and in accordance with the European Union (Animal By-products Regulations 2014 ( S.I. No. 187 of 2014 ) and the Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies Regulations 2015 ( S.I. No. 532 of 2015 ) to undertake the transport of manure.

• (2) Subject to sub-article (3), the capacity of facilities for the storage of livestock manure may be less than the capacity specified in Article 12 or 13, as appropriate, in relation to—

• (a) deer, goats, horses or sheep which are out-wintered at a grassland stocking rate which does not exceed the annualised equivalent of 100 kg nitrogen per hectare at any time during the period specified in Schedule 4 in relation to the application of organic fertiliser other than farmyard manure, or

• (b) livestock (other than dairy cows, deer, goats, horses or sheep) which are out-wintered at a grassland stocking rate which does not exceed the annualised equivalent of 85 kg nitrogen per hectare at any time during the period specified in Schedule 4 in relation to the application of organic fertiliser other than farmyard manure.

• (3) Sub-article (2) shall apply only in relation to a holding where all the following conditions are met—

• (a) all the lands used for out-wintering of the livestock are contained on the holding,

• (b) the out-wintered livestock have free access at all times to the required lands,

• (c) the amount of manure produced on the holding prior to export in the previous year did not exceed an amount containing 100 kg of nitrogen per hectare per annum,

• (d) severe damage to the surface of the land by poaching does not occur, and

• (e) the reduction in storage capacity is proportionate to the extent of out-wintered livestock on the holding.

PART 3 NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT

Interpretation, commencement etc.

15.

• (2) The amount of nitrogen or phosphorus specified in Table 8 or 9 of Schedule 2, as the case may be, in relation to a type of livestock manure or other substance specified in the relevant table shall for the purposes of this Part be deemed to be the amount of nitrogen or phosphorus, as the case may be, contained in that type of manure or substance except as may be otherwise specified in a certificate issued in accordance with Article 33.

• (3) The amount of nitrogen or phosphorus available to a crop from a fertiliser of a type which is specified in Table 10 of Schedule 2 in the year of application of that fertiliser shall, for the purposes of this Part, be deemed to be the percentage specified in that table of the amount of nitrogen or phosphorus, as the case may be, in the fertiliser.

• (4) The amount of nitrogen or phosphorus available to a crop from an organic fertiliser of a type which is not specified in Table 10 of Schedule 2 shall be deemed to be the amount specified in the table in relation to cattle manure or, where supported by the necessary analysis, the amount of nitrogen estimated on the basis of the C:N ratio of the compost in accordance with Table 10a unless a different amount has been determined in relation to that fertiliser by, or with the agreement of, the relevant local authority or the Agency, as the case may be.

• (5) A reference in this Part to the “nitrogen index” or the “phosphorus index” in relation to soil is a reference to the index number assigned to the soil in accordance with Table 11 or 12 of Schedule 2, as the case may be, to indicate the level of nitrogen or phosphorus available from the soil.

• (6) A maximum crude protein content of 14% is permissible in concentrate feed fed to dairy cows and other cattle aged two years old and over at grass between 15 April and 30 September. Records of crude protein content of concentrate feed shall be kept in accordance with Article 24(1)(i).

• (7) On holdings with a previous year grassland stocking rate of 170 kg nitrogen per hectare from grazing livestock manure or above prior to export of livestock manure from the holding, a liming programme shall be prepared and implemented. The programme shall establish the following—

• (a) a calculation of liming requirements for each parcel to achieve optimum pH,

• (b) a lime application programme for the farm based on application of the full lime requirement outlined on the soil analysis report within two years of the date of issue of that report, and

• (c) notwithstanding paragraph (b) above, where the lime requirement outlined on the soil analysis report exceeds 5 tonnes per hectare the requirement shall be to apply at least 5 tonnes per hectare within two years of the date of issue of that report.

• (8) The stocking rate allowance for commonage land shall not exceed 50 kg organic nitrogen per hectare.

• (9) Chemical fertiliser shall not be spread on commonage land.

Duty of occupier in relation to nutrient management

16.

Requirements for milk producers and arable land in relation to nutrient management

17.

• (a) For the purpose of determination of the milking platform organic and chemical fertiliser allowance, milk producers must declare their milking platform each year.

• (b) For the purpose of determination of the stocking rate on the milking platform, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine will consider all dairy cows on the holding to be based on the milking platform. If that gives rise to a milking platform stocking rate greater than 259 kg organic N/ha, organic nitrogen produced on the holding must move outside the milking platform or a lower chemical fertiliser allowance will apply as set out in Table 14..

• (c) Notwithstanding the requirements for cattle slurry in Article 19(1) where organic fertiliser(s) is applied to arable land post-harvest it must be incorporated into the soil and a crop sown within 21 days of application.

• (d) Notwithstanding, sub-paragraph (1)(c) with the exception of arable land being sown to brassica spp or grass crops by 15 September, post-harvest application of organic fertiliser in the form of sewage sludge shall be prohibited in the Barrow Catchment and the Slaney & Wexford Harbour Catchment with effect from 1 January 2028.

• (2) For the purposes of the determination of the grassland stocking rate in Tables 13, 15a and 15b the previous calendar year’s stocking rate data shall be used.

• (3) Notwithstanding sub-article (2) in the case of a new entrant or those subject to stocking rate alterations, for the purposes of the determination of the grassland stocking rate in Tables 13, 15a and 15b the lesser of the actual or projected current year grassland stocking rate shall be used.

• (4)
• (a) For the purposes of this article, soil test results that do not state the corresponding georeference(s) or Land Parcel Identification System (LPIS) parcel(s) will be defaulted to Phosphorous Index 4.

• (b) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (a), reports of soil test results must state the corresponding georeference(s) or LPIS parcel(s) represented by the soil sample. Where a soil analysis result represents more than one field or LPIS parcel a georeference for each field or the LPIS number for each parcel represented by the sample must be stated on the soil test result.

• (c) Notwithstanding sub-paragraph (a), all occupiers of holdings that have a previous year grassland stocking rate of 130 kg N/ha or above prior to export of livestock manure, shall take soil tests and shall assume Phosphorous Index 4 until soil tests are taken.

• (d) Notwithstanding sub-paragraph (a), new entrants or those subject to stocking rate alterations with an actual or projected current year grassland stocking rate of 130 kg N/ha or above prior to export of livestock manure, shall take soil tests and shall assume Phosphorous Index 4 until soil tests are taken.

• (e) Notwithstanding sub-paragraph (a), all arable land shall be subject to soil tests and Phosphorous Index 4 shall be assumed until soil tests are taken.

• (f) Notwithstanding sub-paragraph (a), occupiers that are not subject to sub paragraphs (b), (d) and (e), and do not have a soil test, the phosphorous index for soil shall be deemed to be Phosphorous Index 3.

• (g) The soil test to be taken into account for the purposes of sub-paragraphs (a), (c), (d) and (e) in relation to soil shall, subject to paragraph (h), be the soil test most recently taken in relation to that soil.

• (h) Where a period of four years or more has elapsed after the taking of a soil test, the results of that test shall be disregarded for the purposes of paragraphs (a), (c), (d) and (e) except in a case where that soil test indicates the soil to be at Phosphorus Index 4.

• (i) The phosphorus fertilisation rate for soils with more than 20% organic matter shall not exceed the amounts permitted for Phosphorus Index 3 soils, subject to the provisions of paragraph (j).

• (j) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (i), soils shall be deemed to have an organic matter content of 20% as defined on a Teagasc-EPA Indicative Soils map unless otherwise determined in soil tests carried out in accordance with Schedule 1.

• (k) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (j), a soil test result determining organic matter content will be valid for 12 years following sampling.

• (5) Without prejudice to the generality of sub-article (1) and subject to sub- article (6), the amount of available nitrogen or available phosphorus applied to promote the growth of a crop specified in Table 13, 15a, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22, 21, 22 or 23 of Schedule 2 shall not exceed the amount specified in the table in relation to that crop having regard to the relevant nitrogen index or phosphorus index, as the case may be, for the soil on which the crops are to be grown. In the case of crops not identified in the tables listed above, fertilisers shall be applied in accordance with Teagasc guidance as approved by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

• (6) Increased phosphorus build-up on grassland on farms with grassland stocking rates of 130 kg nitrogen per hectare and above shall only be permitted in accordance with the rates contained in Table 15b provided that the following conditions are met—

• (a) a soil test is carried out for soil phosphorus and soil organic matter contents; Soils must be deemed to have an organic matter content of 20% as defined on a Teagasc-EPA Indicative Soils map unless otherwise determined in soil tests carried out in accordance with this article.

• (b) an occupier availing of the phosphorus build-up programme must engage the services of a Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine approved Farm Advisory System adviser.

• (c) a detailed farm nutrient management plan for the holding must be submitted in a format specified by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

• (d) the occupier must participate in an appropriate training programme specified by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for the purpose of meeting the requirements of these regulations.

• (7) In the case of a holding on which grazing livestock are held, the amount of available phosphorus supplied to the holding by concentrated feedstuff shall be the amount fed to such livestock in excess of 300 kg per 92 kg of livestock manure nitrogen in the previous calendar year and the phosphorus content of such concentrated feedstuff shall, in the absence of a known phosphorus content or phosphorus content provided by the supplier, be deemed to be 0.5 kg phosphorus in respect of each 100 kg of such concentrated feedstuff.

• (8) The nitrogen and phosphorus maximum rates in Tables 13, 15a, 15b, 16 and 17 are in addition to the nitrogen and phosphorus contained in grazing livestock manure produced on the holding.

• (9) All new perennial rye grass (Lolium perenne) based reseeds on farms shall incorporate at least 1.5 kg/ha of naked clover seed or at least 2.5 kg/ha of pelleted clover seed, except in the case of land that is being reseeded for grazing by equines.

PART 4 PREVENTION OF WATER POLLUTION FROM FERTILISERS AND CERTAIN ACTIVITIES

Distances from a water body and other issues

18.

• (2) Organic fertiliser or soiled water shall not be applied to land within—

• (a) 200 m of the abstraction point of any surface waters, borehole, spring or well used for the abstraction of water for human consumption in a water scheme supplying 100 m^3 or more of water per day or serving 500 or more persons,

• (b) 100 m of the abstraction point (other than an abstraction point specified in paragraph (a)) of any surface waters, borehole, spring or well used for the abstraction of water for human consumption in a water scheme supplying 10 m^3 or more of water per day or serving 50 or more persons,

• (c) 25 m of any borehole, spring or well used for the abstraction of water for human consumption other than a borehole, spring or well specified in paragraph (a) or (b),

• (d) 20 m of a lake shoreline or a turlough likely to flood,

• (e) 15 m of exposed cavernous or karstified limestone features (such as swallow-holes and collapse features),

• (f) subject to sub-article (12), 5 m of any surface waters (other than a lake or surface waters specified at paragraph (a) or (b)), or

• (g) the distance specified in sub-article (2)(f) shall be increased to 10 m for a period of two weeks preceding and two weeks following the periods specified in Schedule 4.

• (h) notwithstanding sub-article (2)(f), organic fertiliser or soiled water shall not be applied to land within 10 m of any surface waters where the land has an average incline greater than 10% sloping towards water.

• (3) Notwithstanding the requirements of sub-articles (2)(a), (2)(b) and (2)(c), organic fertiliser or soiled water may be applied to land within—

• (a) 30 m from the abstraction point in the case of any surface waters, bore-hole, spring or well used for the abstraction of water for human consumption in a water scheme supplying 10 m3 or more of water per day or serving 50 or more persons, or

• (b) 15 m from the abstraction point in the case of any borehole, spring or well used for the abstraction of water for human consumption other than a borehole, spring or well specified in paragraph (a),

where the provisions of sub-article (4) are complied with.

• (4) Organic fertiliser or soiled water may only be applied to land in accordance with sub-article (3) where a local authority, Uisce Éireann, or other water supplier (as the case may be) has completed a technical assessment of conditions in the vicinity of the abstraction point, including taking into account variation in soil and subsoil conditions, the landspreading pressures in the area, the type of abstraction, available water quality evidence and the likely risk to the water supply source and the local authority, in consultation with Uisce Éireann or other water supplier, where relevant, has determined that the distance does not give rise to a risk to the water supply and a potential danger to human health.

• (5) A local authority may, following consultation with Uisce Éireann, or another water supplier, where relevant, decide to apply the landspreading restriction to the upstream catchment area and to the close proximity downstream of the abstraction point in the case of any surface waters.

• (6) A local authority may, in the case of any particular abstraction point and following consultation with the Agency and, where relevant, Uisce Éireann, or other water supplier, specify a greater distance than that specified in sub-articles (2) or (3) where, following prior investigations by Uisce Éireann or other water supplier or the local authority (as the case may be), the local authority is satisfied that such distance is appropriate for the protection of waters being abstracted at that point. The distance so specified shall be determined by the local authority using an evidence-based approach which takes into account the natural vulnerability of the waters to contamination from land spreading, the potential risk to human health arising from the landspreading activity as well as the water quality evidence, including information on water quality trends.

• (7) Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-articles (2), (3) and (6), a local authority shall, following prior investigations by Uisce Éireann or other water supplier or the local authority (as the case may be) and following consultation with the Agency and, where relevant, Uisce Éireann or other water supplier, specify an alternative distance, including a landspreading exclusion area where necessary, in the case of a water abstraction for human consumption in a scheme supplying 10 m3 or more of water per day, or serving 50 or more persons, within a timeframe to be agreed with the Agency and, where relevant, Uisce Éireann or other water supplier, where—

• (a) on the basis of the results of monitoring carried out for the purposes of Article 7 of the European Communities (Drinking Water) Regulations 2023 (S.I. No. 99/2023), the quality of water intended for human consumption does not meet the parametric values specified in Part I of the Schedule of those Regulations or the quality of water constitutes a potential danger to human health, and it appears to the local authority following consultation with the Agency and, where relevant, Uisce Éireann or other water supplier, that this is due to the landspreading of organic fertilisers or soiled water in the vicinity of the abstraction point, or

• (b) investigations undertaken by Uisce Éireann or other water supplier as part of the management of a water supply scheme indicate that the landspreading activity presents a significant risk to the drinking water supply or a potential danger to human health having regard to catchment factors in the vicinity of the abstraction point including but not limited to slope, vulnerability, and hydrogeology, the scale and intensity of land spreading pressures, the type of water supply source and water quality evidence, including information on water quality trends.

• (8) A distance specified by a local authority in accordance with sub-articles (3), (5), (6) and (7) may be described as a distance or distances from an abstraction point, a hydrogeological boundary or topographical feature or as an area delineated on a map or in such other way as appears appropriate to the authority.

• (9) In relation to sub-articles (6) and (7), “prior investigations” means, in relation to an abstraction point, an assessment of the susceptibility of waters to contamination in the vicinity of the abstraction point having regard to—

• (a) the direction of flow of surface water or groundwater, as the case may be,

• (b) the slope of the land and its runoff potential,

• (c) the natural geological and hydrogeological attributes of the area including the nature and depth of any overlying soil and subsoil and its effectiveness in preventing or reducing the entry of harmful substances to water, and

• (d) where relevant, the technical specifications set out in the document “Groundwater Protection Schemes” published in 1999 (ISBN 1-899702-22-9) or any subsequent published amendment of that document.

• (10) Where a local authority specifies a distance in accordance with either of sub-articles (3), (5), (6) or (7) the authority shall, as soon as may be—

• (a) notify the affected landowners, Uisce Éireann or other water supplier, the Agency and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine of the distance so specified,

• (b) send to the Agency a summary of the report of any investigations undertaken and the reasons for specifying the alternative distance,

• (c) make an entry in the register maintained in accordance with Article 31(6), and

• (d) publish and maintain on the local authority website an updated schedule of setback distances specified for each drinking water supply.

• (11) The Agency may issue advice or direction to Uisce Éireann, or another water supplier or a local authority in relation to any requirements including requirements for technical assessments and prior investigations arising under sub-articles (2), (3), (4), (5), (6), (7), (8) or (9) and Uisce Éireann, or other water supplier or a local authority (as the case may be) shall comply with any such advice or direction given.

• (12) Where farmyard manure is held in a field prior to landspreading it shall be held in a compact heap and shall not be placed within—

• (a) 250 m of the abstraction point of any surface waters or borehole, spring or well used for the abstraction of water for human consumption in a water scheme supplying 10 m^3 or more of water per day or serving 50 or more persons,

• (b) 50 m of any other borehole, spring or well used for the abstraction of water for human consumption other than a borehole, spring or well specified at paragraph (a),

• (c) 20 m of a lake shoreline or a turlough likely to flood,

• (d) 50 m of exposed cavernous or karstified limestone features (such as swallow-holes and collapse features),

• (e) 20 m of any surface waters (other than a lake or surface waters specified at paragraph (a)).

• (13) Organic fertiliser shall not be held in a field at any time during the periods specified in Schedule 4 as applicable to that substance.

• (14) Where there is inadequate facilities for the collection and storage of any potential effluent from silage bales, bales may only be stored at a maximum height of two bales, and at least 20 m from surface water or a drinking water abstraction point.

• (15) No cultivation shall take place within 3 m of a watercourse identified on the modern 1:5,000 scale Tailte Éireann mapping or better, except in the case of grassland establishment or the sowing of grass crops.

• (16) Supplementary feeding points shall not be located within 20 m of waters and shall not be located on bare rock.

• (17) In the case of livestock holdings with a previous year grassland stocking rate of 170 kg nitrogen per hectare from livestock manure or above prior to export of livestock manure, bovines shall not be permitted to drink directly from watercourses identified on the modern 1:5,000 scale Tailte Éireann mapping or better. Where bovines are present on such a holding, in the absence of a physical barrier preventing bovine access within 1.5 m of a watercourse, a fence shall be placed at least 1.5 m from the top of the riverbank, as measured from the bankfull point, or in the absence of a riverbank at least 1.5 m from the water’s edge. It will be permissible to move livestock across a watercourse to an isolated land parcel where necessary, provided that both sides of the watercourse are fenced.

• (18) In the case of holdings identified in sub-article (17), supplementary drinking points shall not be located within 20 m of surface waters.

• (19) There shall be no direct runoff of soiled water from farm roadways to waters. The occupier of a holding shall comply with any specification for farm roadways specified by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine pursuant to this requirement.

• (20) There shall be no direct runoff of soiled waters to waters resulting from the poaching of land on the holding.

• (21) For late harvested crops, a minimum uncultivated buffer of 6 m shall be put in place to protect any intersecting watercourses.

Requirements as to manner of application of fertilisers, soiled water etc.

19.

• (b) Low emission slurry spreading equipment shall be used for the application of slurry on holdings with a previous year’s grassland stocking rates of 100 kg nitrogen per hectare from grazing livestock manure or above prior to export of livestock manure from the holding.

• (c) Low emission slurry spreading equipment shall be used for the application of slurry produced by pigs on any holding.

• (d) Low emission slurry spreading equipment shall be used for the application of slurry to arable land unless the slurry shall be incorporated into the soil within 24 hours.

• (e) Notwithstanding sub-paragraph (b), where for operator health and safety reasons it would be inappropriate to comply with that requirement due to land within a grassland parcel sloping steeply, it is permitted to spread cattle slurry close to the ground using a downward-facing splashplate. In this scenario, the occupier must keep a record of such spreading including the LPIS number and the spreading date(s).

• (2) Organic and chemical fertilisers or soiled water shall not be applied to land in any of the following circumstances—

• (a) the land is waterlogged,

• (b) the land is flooded or likely to flood,

• (c) the land is snow-covered or frozen,

• (d) heavy rain is forecast within 48 hours, or

• (e) the ground is sloping steeply and there is a risk of water pollution having regard to factors such as surface runoff pathways, the presence of land drains, the absence of hedgerows to mitigate surface flow, soil condition and ground cover.

• (3) A person shall, for the purposes of sub-article (2)(d), have regard to weather forecasts issued by Met Éireann.

• (4) Organic fertilisers or soiled water shall not be applied to land—

• (a) by use of an umbilical system with an upward-facing splashplate,

• (b) by use of a tanker with an upward-facing splashplate,

• (c) by use of a sludge irrigator mounted on a tanker, or

• (d) from a road or passageway adjacent to the land irrespective of whether or not the road or passageway is within or outside the curtilage of the holding.

• (5) Subject to sub-article (6), soiled water shall not be applied to land—

• (a) in quantities which exceed in any period of 42 days a total quantity of 50,000 litres per hectare, or

• (b) by irrigation at a rate exceeding 5 mm per hour.

• (6) In an area which is identified on maps compiled by the Geological Survey of Ireland as “Extreme Vulnerability Areas on Karst Limestone Aquifers”, soiled water shall not be applied to land—

• (a) in quantities which exceed in any period of 42 days a total quantity of 25,000 litres per hectare, or

• (b) by irrigation at a rate exceeding 3 mm per hour unless the land has a consistent minimum thickness of 1m of soil and subsoil combined.

• (7) For the purposes of sub-article (6), it shall be assumed until the contrary is shown that areas so identified as “Extreme Vulnerability Areas on Karst Limestone Aquifers” do not have a consistent minimum thickness of 1 m of soil and subsoil combined.

Periods when application of fertilisers is prohibited

20.

• (2) Sub-article (1) shall not apply in relation to the application to land of—

• (a) soiled water, subject to Article 5(3), or

• (b) chemical fertilisers to meet the crop requirements of Autumn- planted cabbage or of crops grown under cover, or

• (c) fertilisers whose application rate or usage rate is less than 1 kg per hectare of available nitrogen or phosphorus.

Limits on the amount of livestock manure to be applied

21.

• (2) For the purposes of sub-article (1), the amount of nitrogen produced by livestock and the nitrogen content of livestock manure shall be calculated in accordance with Tables 7, 8 and 9 of Schedule 2 except in the case of pig manure or poultry manure where a different amount is specified in a certificate issued in accordance with Article 33 in relation to that manure.

• (3) For the purposes of sub-article (1), the area of a holding shall be deemed to be the eligible area of the holding.

Ploughing and the use of non-selective herbicides

22.

• (2) Where grassland is ploughed between 1 July and 15 October the necessary measures shall be taken within 14 days of ploughing to provide for emergence of green cover from a sown crop.

• (3) Grassland shall not be ploughed between 16 October and 30 November.

• (4)
• (a) When a non-selective herbicide is applied to arable land or to grassland in the period between 1 July and 30 November the necessary measures shall be taken to provide for the emergence of green cover, within 6 weeks of that application.

• (b) When a non-selective herbicide is applied to land after 15 October, the requirement in sub-article 4 (a) shall be reduced to 75% of the relevant cereal area where a contract is in place for a cereal crop which prohibits the application of a non-selective herbicide pre-harvest.

• (5) Where green cover is provided for in compliance with this article, the cover shall not be removed by ploughing or by the use of a non-selective herbicide before 1 December unless a crop is sown within two weeks of its removal.

• (6) In the case of land which is ploughed in the course of a ploughing competition under the auspices of the National Ploughing Association, a temporary exemption applies in the form of an extension to the time period specified in sub-article (1) or (2) for establishment of green cover after the land is ploughed.

PART 5 GENERAL

General duty of occupier

23.

• (2) An occupier of a holding shall comply with any advice and/or directions which may be issued from time to time for the purposes of these Regulations by the Minister, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine or the Agency.

Keeping of records by occupier

24.

• (a) total area of the holding,

• (b) eligible area of the holding,

• (c) cropping regimes and their individual areas,

• (d) livestock numbers and type,

• (e) an estimation of the annual fertiliser requirement for the holding and a copy of any Nutrient Management Plan prepared in relation to the holding,

• (f) quantities and types of chemical fertilisers and lime moved on to or off the holding, including opening stock, records of purchase and closing stock as declared on the National Fertiliser Database,

• (g) the results of any soil tests carried out in relation to the holding,

• (h) the nature and capacity of facilities on the holding for the storage of livestock manure and other organic fertilisers, soiled water and effluents from dungsteads, farmyard manure pits, silage pits or silage clamps, including an assessment of compliance with Articles 9 to 14,

• (i) the quantities and types of concentrate feedstuff to grazing livestock on the holding, and

• (j) the location of any abstraction point of water used for human consumption from any surface waters, borehole, spring or well.

• (2) Where organic fertiliser(s) are being moved off a holding or from a legal entity for the purpose of being applied to agricultural land, the nutrient exporter must notify the movement to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine within a four day period of when the movement took place and in a format prescribed by the Minister for Agriculture Food and the Marine.

• (3) In accordance with sub-article (2), an occupier must verify receipt of the organic fertiliser(s) to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine in the manner prescribed by 14 July of each calendar year for organic fertilisers received in the period between 1 January and 30 June of each calendar year and by 14 January of the following year for organic fertiliser(s) received in the period between 1 July and 31 December of each calendar year.

• (4) Where fertiliser is used on a holding and a certificate of the type mentioned in Article 15 or 21 was issued in relation to that fertiliser in accordance with Article 33, a copy of the certificate shall be retained and be available for inspection on the holding for a period of not less than five years from the expiry of validity of the certificate.

• (5) Records shall be prepared for each calendar year by 14 February of the following year and—

• (a) shall be retained for a period of not less than five years, or

• (b) in the case of an organic matter test result, records shall be retained for a period of not less than 12 years.

• (6) Notwithstanding sub-paragraphs (1), (2), (3), (4) and (5) an occupier shall, where requested by the Minister, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, a local authority or the Agency, provide such information as is requested relating to the movement of organic fertilisers on or off the holding or to or from a legal entity.

• (7) For the calculation of excretion rate bands—

• (a) A milk producer shall maintain records of all milk deliveries to milk purchasers from that holding over the previous three calendar years, and shall make available, on an annual basis, to the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, or any third party certified by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine such records in order to determine the excretion rates of dairy cows on the holding in accordance with Table 7 and Table 7a of Schedule 2.

• (b) If the record of all milk delivered to milk purchaser on an annual basis over the previous three calendar years from a holding is not submitted to the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, or a third party certified by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, by 15 May of any year, the designation of that occupier’s herd will be assigned, by default, to the highest excretion rate band as set out in Table 7 of Schedule 2 for that year, or until the occupier submits information to the satisfaction of the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine confirming a different excretion rate band as set out in Table 7 of Schedule 2 is appropriate for their herd.

False or misleading information

25.

Authorised person

26.

• (a) a person who is an authorised person for the purposes of section 28 of the Local Government (Water Pollution) Act, 1977 (No. 1 of 1977), or

• (b) a person appointed under sub-article (11) to be an authorised person for the purposes of these Regulations.

• (2) An authorised person may for any purpose connected with these Regulations—

• (a) enter and inspect any premises for the purposes of performing a function under these Regulations or of obtaining any information which he or she may require for such purposes,

• (b) at all reasonable times, or at any time if he or she has reasonable grounds for believing that there is or may be a risk to the environment, or that an offence under these Regulations is being or is about to be committed, arising from the carrying on of an activity at a premises, enter any premises and bring onto those premises such other persons (including a member of the Garda Síochána) or equipment as he or she may consider necessary, or

• (c) at any time if he or she has reasonable grounds for suspecting there may be a risk to the environment, or that an offence under these Regulations is being or is about to be committed, involving the use of any vehicle halt and board the vehicle and require the driver of the vehicle to take it to a place designated by the authorised person, and such a vehicle may be detained at that place by the authorised person for such period as he or she may consider necessary.

• (3) An authorised person shall not enter into a private dwelling under this article unless one of the following conditions applies—

• (a) the entry is effected with the consent of the occupier, or

• (b) the entry is authorised by a warrant issued under sub-article (7).

• (4) Whenever an authorised person enters any premises or boards any vehicle, under this article, he or she may—

• (a) take photographs and carry out inspections, record information on data loggers, make tape, electrical, video or other recordings,

• (b) carry out tests and make copies of documents (including records kept in electronic form) found therein and take samples,

• (c) monitor any effluent, including trade effluent or other matter, which is contained in or discharged from a premises,

• (d) carry out surveys, take levels, make excavations and carry out examinations of depth and nature of subsoil,

• (e) require that the premises or vehicle or any part of the premises or anything in the premises or vehicle shall be left undisturbed for a specified period,

• (f) require information from an occupier of the premises of any occupant of the vehicle or any person employed on the premises or any other person on the premises,

• (g) require the production of, or inspect, records (including records held in electronic form) or documents, or take copies of or extracts from any records or documents, and