AOC SMILES: Dutch farmers protest plan to curb nitrogen pollution.

Thousands of farmers were gathering in a village near the centre of the Netherlands on Wednesday to protest a government plan to curb nitrogen pollution, many travelling by tractor from all corners of the country and snarling traffic.

The protest in Stroe, 70 kilometres east of Amsterdam, follows the introduction last week of targets for reducing pollution by harmful nitrogen compounds in some areas by up to 70% by 2030 – the latest attempt to solve a problem that has plagued the country for years.

Reductions are necessary in emissions of nitrogen oxides from farm animal manure and use of ammonia for fertilisation, the government says. Nitrogen oxides in the atmosphere help form acid rain, while fertiliser washed into lakes can cause algal blooms that kill marine life.

Farmers argue the targets are poorly conceived and unfair. They are expected to lead to a 30% reduction in the number of Dutch livestock, with effects more concentrated in agricultural areas bordering nature preserves.

“These reductions are so severe that those rural communities will be totally devastated economically, and that’s the reason our farmers are going to Stroe today” said Sander van Diepen, a spokesperson for agricultural organization LTO.

As John O’Sullivan tweets, “This is a warning. People have no idea of the sacrifices that will be required of them in lifestyle changes as well as in higher taxes and higher energy prices to meet Net Zero targets. And they won’t like them.“

Flashback to early 2019, when the then-new socialist “It Girl” was in her heyday: “We set a goal to get to net-zero, rather than zero emissions, in 10 years because we aren’t sure that we’ll be able to fully get rid of farting cows and airplanes that fast.”

UPDATE (FROM GLENN): They see Sri Lanka not as a cautionary example but as a goal. Hey, it’s not the politicians and activists who are starving.