INS301-04 Review the Application of Environmental Assessments in the Management of Nutrients in NI

3.1 To carry out a review of the application of environmental assessments in the management of nutrient inputs to the environment in Northern Ireland. 3.2 This objective will be achieved through review and critical appraisal of the following areas, as described further in Section 5: a. Evaluate the degree to which the environmental assessments carried out for the Nutrient Action Programme (NAP) and Future Agricultural Policy (FAP) are appropriate in the context of the risks posed to the environment from nutrient inputs. b. Review the evidence underpinning the need for, and development of, an appropriate assessment of nutrient inputs to aquatic ecosystems. c. Evaluate the links between the application of Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) of nutrient inputs to aquatic protected sites and other regulations such as the NAP and Urban Wastewater Treatment Regulations (UWWTR) d. Identify gaps in the application of environmental assessment for the management of nutrients and the risks nutrients pose directly and indirectly to protected sites.

3.3 The scope of this project will focus on the Strategic Environmental Assessments (SEA) and HRAs conducted for the Nutrient Action Programme and Future Agricultural Policy in Northern Ireland. This element of the project will consider nutrient emissions to both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, inside and outside of protected sites. 3.4 Separate to this, the project will also have a focus on the need for, and scientific evidence underpinning, the development of an appropriate assessment (as required under Article 6.3 of the Habitats Directive) of nutrient inputs to aquatic protected sites and how this links with the NAP and other regulations, such as the UWWTR.