Government ministers and representatives from environmental organisations recently held a summit at a farm near Puddletown, to discuss the management of nitrates in rivers which flow through West Dorset to Poole Harbour.

West Dorset MP Chris Loder called the summit with Rebecca Pow MP, Minister for Environmental Quality and Resilience, along with representatives from DEFRA, the Environment Agency, Dorset Council and Natural England. 

The summit centred on the ongoing developments with the management of nitrates in the Poole Harbour catchment area, which is considered ecologically important, including the River Frome, Piddle, and its tributaries.

Increasing nitrogen levels from sewage and agriculture are contributing to the growth of algal mats in Poole Harbour and its tributaries. They restrict the growth, distribution and variety of important food available for wading birds in the harbour, designated a Special Protection Area to protect rare, vulnerable and migratory birds. 

The majority of nitrogen is generated from agriculture, but a proportion is generated from human sewage. 

Mr Loder said: "Agriculture contributes to 66 per cent of the nitrogen that enters Poole Harbour, and today we heard representations from the Poole Harbour Agriculture Group about the management of nitrates, as well as the Environment Agency and Natural England."

"It is important that any scheme to resolve this matter finds a balance between farming needs and the interests of the environment. A voluntary, rather than regulatory approach, seems the most preferable approach to the hundreds of farmers I have consulted."