"The Ministries of Finance and Agriculture have advanced plans to buy out hundreds of farmers and, if necessary, expropriate them, in order to quickly reduce nitrogen emissions in the Netherlands.

This is apparent from documents that have been viewed by NRC. The cost of this operation could amount to 17 billion euros. The plans point to a rigorously different approach, in which coercion is no longer taboo.

"The other scenario, from the Ministry of Agriculture, is even more ambitious and foresees a major transformation of the Dutch agricultural sector. The government also buys the land from the farmers, which can then be used for more sustainable forms of agriculture: fewer animals [IAF: moving to WEF's "post-animal economy"], less environmental pollution. That costs a lot of money: up to 17 billion."