THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) \u2014 The Dutch agriculture minister has unexpectedly resigned, telling reporters he wasn\u2019t the right person for the job following a tumultuous summer of\u00a0protests by farmers over pollution regulations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Henk Staghouwer, who held the position for only nine months, announced his decision Monday night. He had just returned from Brussels, where he negotiated an agreement with the European Commission to scrap a Dutch exemption to manure spreading limits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Netherlands, along with Denmark, Ireland and the Flanders region of Belgium, had been allowed to exceed caps on how much manure farmers could return to their fields because of the country\u2019s comparatively small land area. But Brussels wants to phase out this dispensation because the Dutch are failing to meet EU water quality standards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The country\u2019s lucrative agriculture sector has been in crisis since a 2019 court ruling forced the government to slash emissions of nitrogen oxide and ammonia, which livestock produce. Thousands of farmers have staged protests,\u00a0blockading cities with tractors and burning hay bales along highways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A 60-year-old former baker, Staghouwer had been tasked with transitioning the sector away from intensive farming practices and buying out farmers to reduce total emissions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The government allocated an extra 24.3 billion euros ($24.2 billion) to tackle the problem. Last week Staghouwer told the Cabinet that he would be unable to meet a mid-September deadline to present a plan for the transition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI respect his brave decision,\u201d Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte wrote on Twitter, but others were less praising. Member of parliament Caroline van der Plas of The Farmer\u2013Citizen Movement party (BBB) said \u201che was totally unsuitable\u201d for the job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bart Kemp of farmers\u2019 organization Agractie told Dutch public broadcaster NOS that Staghouwer was \u201ca friendly man, but not a decisive person.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Staghouwer\u2019s role will temporarily be taken on by the former agricultural minister Carola Schouten.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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