Burning hay bales, tractor chaos and violent clashes with police. In the Netherlands, the government’s new climate targets have caused a storm among local farmers whose protests are now stopping traffic and supplies of goods across the country.
The cause? The government’s updated climate and environmental goals, which have aroused burning anger among Dutch farmers who believe that the new goals could completely knock out the business for a large part of the country’s farms. This is what we know about the protests:
In June, the government’s announcement came about updated climate and environmental goals that can only be achieved with a sharp reduction in livestock and less manure. Above all, the country’s emissions of nitrogen and ammonia must be reduced by a total of 50 percent by 2030 – two gases that are primarily caused by messaging.
But a reduction of that extent would, according to the government itself, mean that 30 percent of the country’s farmers with livestock would be forced to close down their operations completely.
The rationale behind the proposal is that nitrogen discharges can give rise to acid rain and that manure discharges that reach nearby watercourses pose a threat to marine biodiversity.
The proposal would affect 131 areas in the country that are directly adjacent to vulnerable natural areas.
The climate plans have caused the country’s farmers and allies to collapse. Frustrated and anxious protesters gathered in thousands at the border with Germany to prevent traffic last weekend.
On Monday, a tractor-blocked delivery to a grocery store in the city of Drachten stopped. Hay bales have been set on fire next to roads all over the country and in the square Dam gathered a dozen tractors with banners that read “the war has begun, and we will win”.
On Friday, Amsterdam Airport encouraged passengers to take public transport to the airport as tractors continue to block the roads into the airport.
On Tuesday, local police shot at a 16-year-old participant in the protests in Friesland, a province in the northern Netherlands. The 16-year-old is said to have driven a tractor towards the police at the time, who then fired to stop the progress of the vehicle.
The boy was arrested in connection with the incident, suspected of attempted murder, but was released the next day. By that time, however, clips from the incident had already gone viral on social media and the 16-year-old quickly became a symbol of the widespread protests.
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