Publication Date
Fall 2024
Abstract
The European Union’s 1991 Nitrates Directive was designed to mitigate agricultural nitrogen pollution to ground and surface waters, thereby alleviating its damaging effects to natural environments and human health. This study confirmed that its purpose and goals were justified by the positive linear relationship that exists between levels of agricultural fertilizer application and nitrogen ecosystem surplus. However, this policy has had several second-hand impacts on the Portuguese agricultural sector, such as imposing infrastructure implementation costs and forcing methodology changes. These impacts were examined in the context of the Esposende-Vila do Conde action program, which is within a Nitrate Vulnerable Zone just north of Porto, on a strictly monetary basis with all uncommodifiable impacts being excluded. The study estimated an aggregate annual opportunity cost of 14,217 euros. This coupled with the study’s inability to unveil a stable trend of environmental alleviation suggests the need for policy reform. While this reform can come through different structural changes, its broad goal should be for regulatory efforts to more surgically target polluted areas. This will ensure that sacrifices made by farmers are efficiently translating to environmental benefits, ultimately creating a more sustainable yet still economically functional Portuguese agricultural sector.
Disciplines
Life Sciences | Social and Behavioral Sciences
Recommended Citation
Mayes, Ben, "The Impact of the Nitrates Directive on the Portuguese Agricultural Sector" (2024). Portugal: Sustainability and Environmental Justice. 3.
https://digitalcollections.sit.edu/por/3