Originally, the so-called The Distance/Odor Act aroused great concern and opposition from animal breeders. The entry into force of regulations that would deal with the issue of odor only through the minimum distance between new investments and residential buildings was simply unfortunate. The act assumed a minimum distance depending on the large inventory units planned to be maintained. There were two limit levels given there, min. distances for new investments 210 m and 500 m.
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Distance Act, well-being, ASF, lack of profitability – who can cope with it?
Distance alone will not eliminate the odor, a comprehensive approach was lacking
Breeders then warned that it was not always possible to find good locations for a livestock building, especially in areas with a higher density of pigs. The greatest reservations and concerns were also raised by the provisions of the Act covering already existing livestock facilities. Many of them did not meet the planned provisions of the Act. Therefore, their modernization, which will require obtaining a decision on environmental conditions, will not be possible.
It was also pointed out that the approach to the issue of odor from farm facilities was too shallow, namely that support for the modernization of facilities and the investment of new facilities in anti-odor technologies was omitted. Omitting nutritional or slurry additives that support the elimination of odor.
From the answers to the interpellations of Małgorzata Tracz and Krystyna Skibińska, we learn that the body responsible for developing and submitting the project to the Council of Ministers was the Ministry of Climate and Environment, and the planned date of adoption of the project by the Council of Ministers was the fourth quarter of 2023. The draft act was published on June 1, 2021 on the website of the Public Information Bulletin of the Government Legislation Center and sent for inter-ministerial consultations.
KO MPs indicate that recently their MP's office has been receiving many inquiries from residents of rural areas, but also from representatives of the press about the current status of work on the above-mentioned bill. This is due to the increasing social and environmental problems for local communities generated by odor nuisance associated with large animal production facilities (industrial farms for breeding pigs, poultry or fur animals).
Expert opinions will indicate the direction of legislation
In response, the Ministry of Environment and Environment indicates that work on the act and implementation of tasks related to reducing odor nuisance are still within the competence of the Ministry of Climate and Environment.
– In order to determine the directions of legislation in this area, the following tasks were commissioned: expert opinions: List of substances and chemical compounds that cause odor nuisance and Safe distances from buildings for projects whose operation is associated with the risk of odor nuisance. Taking into account the conclusions resulting from the above documents and the number of requests for intervention regarding the occurrence of odor nuisance caused mainly by installations intended for breeding and breeding animals, the need to create regulations to define the conditions for conducting these projects became apparent. In the 9th term of office of the Sejm, the legislative process of the draft act on the minimum distance for a planned project in the agricultural sector, the operation of which may involve the risk of odor nuisance, was carried out, but the regulation process was not completed – we read.