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AMSTERDAM, May 2 (Reuters) - The European Commission on
Tuesday said it had approved two Dutch plans worth a combined
1.47 billion euros ($1.61 billion) to buy out livestock farmers
to reduce nitrogen pollution, saying they are permissible under
state aid rules.
The Dutch need to reduce excess nitrogen levels, caused in
part by decades of intensive farming, a problem that has led to
courts blocking important construction projects until the issue
is resolved.
Discontent over government plans to address the problem
until now date led to a major defeat for Prime Minister Mark
Rutte's governing coalition in regional elections in March.
Farm buyouts are seen as an important step toward a
comprehensive plan to address the issue.
In the schemes approved by the European Union's executive
body on Tuesday, the Netherlands reserved the money to
compensate farmers who voluntarily close farms located near
nature reserves.
The plans will have "positive effects that outweigh any
potential distortion of competition
and trade in the EU," the Commission said in a statement
approving the aid.
($1 = 0.9131 euros)
(Reporting by Charlotte Van Campenhout, Editing by Bart Meijer)
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