Clients:
EU Commission and Project Management Group

Project Title:
The protection of Waters from Pollution caused by Nitrates from Agricultural Sources (Project locations: Bulgaria and Slovakia)

Project Objective:
To assist the relevant authorities in Bulgaria and Slovakia to bring their legislative and regulatory framework in line with EU requirements prior to their accession into the EU.

Result:
Paul was the agricultural expert in a team of specialist water consultants to assist the local authorities in implementing the Nitrates Directive in their own country. Work conducted included:
· developing codes of good agricultural practice
· defining on-farm measures that limit and avoid pollution of waters by nitrates from agricultural sources
· providing guidance to local authorities in preparing action plans for implementing the Directive
· preparing a training program and information materials (in the Slovak and Bulgarian languages) for farmers from a selected pilot area
· organising a workshop on the principles of protecting waters against nitrate pollution.

The outputs achieved from these tasks were:
· codes of Good Agricultural Practice for Bulgaria and Slovakia
· action plans for the implementation of the Nitrates directive
· training and information materials for farmers
· workshops on the principles of water protection against nitrate pollution for relevant authorities and stakeholders

To produce these outputs Paul was required to:
· Study the agricultural profile of Bulgaria and Slovakia and become knowledgeable about local farming practices, activities and enterprises.
· Consult with local government ministries (environment and agriculture), local authorities, the scientific establishment, the farming community and NGOs
· Recommend a practical and effective Action Programme and Code to prevent water pollution from agricultural activities.