Teagasc Water Quality Conference set for November 24 in Laois

Teagasc will hold its annual Water Quality Conference on Tuesday, November 24, at the Heritage Hotel in Killenard, Co. Laois, with the programme built around three sessions covering farm compliance, nitrogen (N) losses and environmental policy.

The state advisory body has framed the event around a single proposition: that improving Ireland's water quality depends on practical, farm-level action rather than policy paperwork alone. Farmers, advisors, researchers and stakeholders will share experiences, discuss challenges and identify concrete steps to reduce nutrient losses to water across the country.

What does the first session cover?

The opening session is titled 'Increasing Compliance with National Agricultural Inspections Programme (NAIP)' — the framework governing how local authorities inspect farms for environmental standards. Contributors include Cork County Council and Teagasc, an unusual pairing that puts the inspector and the advisor in the same room.

The session is aimed squarely at preparation. Farmers will get practical advice on:

• How to prepare for a farm inspection under the NAIP;
• How to upgrade farm infrastructure to minimise nutrient loss to water.

A Co. Limerick dairy farmer will also take the floor to outline the infrastructure improvements he has already made on his own farm. That first-hand account matters. Advice on yard layout, storage or drainage carries more weight when the person delivering it has paid for and lived with the changes.

How can nitrogen losses be cut?

The second session turns to nutrient efficiency, examining how nitrogen balances on grass-based production systems can be improved. An N balance is essentially the difference between the nitrogen a farm imports or applies and what leaves in produce — a widening gap signals losses to water and air.

For the tillage sector, the session will also address the role of cover crops in reducing nitrogen loss from tillage systems. Again, the programme goes beyond theory: a tillage farmer and a dairy farmer will speak directly about the actions they have implemented on their own holdings.

The structure reflects a consistent logic across the day — policy context first, farmer experience second. Attendees hear what the rules demand, then what compliance and improvement actually look like in the yard and in the field.

Why is the closed period under scrutiny?

The third session, 'Environmental Policy and Compliance', steps back to the regulatory picture. It includes a presentation on the importance of the closed period for slurry spreading — the legally specified window during which spreading is prohibited to prevent nutrient runoff.

It also features a case study on the Moynalty Catchment of the river Boyne, giving the policy discussion a specific waterbody to anchor it. Catchment-level work of this kind is increasingly how Ireland measures whether farm-level change is translating into river-quality results.

Head of the Teagasc water quality knowledge transfer department Noel Meehan set out the stakes in advance of the event. "The Teagasc water quality conference is an opportunity for farmers, advisors, researchers and key stakeholders to share knowledge and practical solutions to improve water quality," he said.

"The collective effort of everyone in the sector is important to achieving results, and I would urge as many as possible to attend this event on 24 November."

What should farmers watch next?

Anyone farming under NAIP inspection, managing slurry storage or rethinking nitrogen use has a direct reason to attend or follow the outputs. Watch for the farmer case studies — the Limerick dairy infrastructure upgrades and the Moynalty Catchment results — to surface in Teagasc advisory material after the conference.