European Communities (Good Agricultural Practice for Protection of Waters) Regulations 2006 (S.I. No. 378 of 2006).

These Regulations make provision for public support for good agricultural practice to protect waters against pollution from agricultural sources. The aim of the Regulations is to reduce pollution of the environment and especially groundwater and surface water resources by more ecologically sound agricultural practice. The Regulations give further effect to several EU Directives including Directives in relation to protection of waters against pollution from agricultural sources, dangerous substances in water, waste management, protection of groundwater, public participation in policy development and water policy.
In general, an occupier of a holding shall ensure compliance with the provisions of these Regulations in respect of that holding and shall keep records as prescribed. The Regulations prescribe measures in respect of the use of fertilizers including: (a) periods when application of fertilizers is prohibited; (b) limits on the application of fertilizers in relation with the size of the land; (c) methods of application; and (d) storage requirements for livestock manure. They define also monitoring, programming and registration functions of the Ministries, the Environmental Protection Agency and local authorities. The monitoring concerns the effectiveness of the measures in terms of agricultural practice and impact on water quality.