Local authorities are set to carry out a projected 4,513 farm inspections in 2025, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has confirmed.

According to the agency the inspections fall under the Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) for the Protection Waters Regulation.

Local authorities also carry out farm inspections in response to incidents, complaints and planning applications.

Three years ago the the EPA was given expanded responsibilities under the Fifth Nitrates Action Programme in relation to the oversight of local authority agricultural inspections and as part of this the EPA developed a National Agricultural Inspection Programme (NAIP).

According to the EPA's latest published allocation of farm inspections (initial GAP) the local authority for Cork City & County is set to carry out the most farm inspections this year - at 587.

Next is the local authority for Tipperary with 587 farm inspections projected for 2025, followed by the local authority for Meath with 318  proposed.

According to the EPA the allocation of farm inspections to each local authority is based on risk assessment and impacts on water quality.

Separately the EPA has also published The National Agricultural Inspection ProgrammeSummary Report for 2024 which shows that 2,598 initial farm inspections (GAP) werecarried out by local authorities last year - more than double the number carriedout in 2023.

However the EPA found that the "rate of non-compliance for the initial GAP inspections" was 42%.

The top two reasons for non-compliance were the control of soiled water and management of farmyard manure.

The EPA has warned that the rate of non-compliance increased in 2024 and "remains unacceptably high".

"In response to the high level of non-compliance, local authorities as well as advisory services and industry must increase compliance promotion and awareness-raising activities to support farmers in their efforts to comply with the GAP Regulations," the agency outlined in its latest report.

According to the EPA although the increase in inspections last year was welcomed, local authorities must now take "stronger enforcement actions and carry out more follow-up inspections to confirm compliance".

The three local authorities that carried out the highest number of initial GAP inspections last year were Cork County - 495, Meath - 256, and Kilkenny - 240.

According to the EPA the majority of local authorities increased their inspection activity in 2024 mainly because they recruited new staff for the NAIP. Local authorities recruited 45 of the 57 additional staff members dedicated to the NAIP.

But while nine local authorities successfully met their interim inspection targets for 2024 there were 20 who did not meet their allocated numbers.