More than 60% of the surface of the United Kingdom is damaged by ammonia and nitrogen. More than 85% of England’s total land area receives ammonia concentrations above the critical level set to protect lichens, mosses and similar plants, 88% in Northern Ireland, 50% in Wales and 20% in Scotland.
According to a study from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), in England the 95% of sites is overload with the pollutants, 89% in Wales, 85% in Northern Ireland and only 40% in Scotland.
Experts and activists are calling for urgent government action to stem the rise of ammonia emissions, nearly 90% of which come from farms.
Simon Bareham, adviser on air quality at the Natural Resources Wales agency, said: «If we don’t do something we risk losing some of these internationally important ecological communities that we have hung on to since the last ice age. In the short term, this poses one of the biggest threats to biodiversity that I’ve come across in my career of over 30 years».
Caroline Lucas, Green Party’s parliamentarian, said: «we usually associate air pollution with cities, so it’s shocking to see how much rural areas are affected by ammonia pollution. Pressure on farmers is forcing many to adopt more intensive agricultural practices for livestock and crop production, and this will only get worse post-Brexit. We need to move to more sustainable practices. This means less but better meat and dairy production, which would not only improve air quality but also benefit the environment, lead to better public health and improve animal protection».
The number of intensive farms has increased by more than a quarter in recent years, according to investigations by the Guardian and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism have shown.
Civil society groups called for sweeping reforms to the way farms are monitored and regulated. «The UK must address what’s coming out of our farms as well as our exhaust pipes», said Kate Nield, clean air lawyer at Client Earth. «Relying on voluntary measures will not be enough – she adds -. If binding rules to limit polluting farm practice aren’t put in place as soon as possible and farmers aren’t made to comply, we will have a major blind spot».
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