Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for coming in. It has been 15 or 20 years since I met Mr. Silke to discuss bogs and designations. Mr. Broderick spoke about this committee and I will give him a few straight truths. There is no point in waffling and saying we are great people. The first thing is that the Shannon has not been drained in 100 years. As for the ground beside it, the Callows, to be honest if nature restoration goes through in its present form in ten or 15 years, you will be doing what Mr. Silke and I were doing 20 years ago in fighting on bogs; you will be fighting to keep your land. Those are the facts and there is no point in waffling. If the nature restoration law that is being voted on goes through in Europe, and all our MEPs are backing it, peaty-type soil, which is in the witnesses' area, will be in trouble. There is no point in saying anything different.

Second, how many Ministers have there been down through the years? I think the former Minister of State, Boxer Moran, was the only one who got diggers into the Shannon and they had to come out of it rapidly because there were going to be injunctions and everything thrown at them because of the habitats directive. Unless the habitats directive and the regulations with it and the simplicity with which it is possible to walk into court and injunct everything are addressed, there is no point in the committee promising the witnesses the sun, moon and stars. We are an agriculture committee but we are not over environmental law. What is happening on the Shannon, the Little Brosna River is blocked with peat, and the rivers of Ireland are blocked. I am able to drive a digger and I know how to do rivers and the rivers of Ireland have not been cleaned. I look at television and people talk about flooding and yes, in low areas we need flood barriers but if there is not a way for water to go, you are in trouble. If there are two feet of muck at the bottom of a river and a lot of water comes the river will be two feet higher. It is common sense. I am actually bringing this up next week in Leaders' Questions. Politicians are on about it now and I have been at it since 2004 or 2005 and Mr. Silke has been at it for long before then and they are talking about doing this and doing that. There is one problem, the habitats directive is stifling the country no matter where you go. We have heard all the promises but in fairness to Ministers, their hands are tied because they will be injuncted. Have a look at Lough Funshinagh in County Roscommon and the height of the water at the moment. There is a pipe that is within 200 m of being done and they cannot put the bucket in the ground. We are caught in ropes due to European legislation unless ministerial orders are made and an agreement is got in Europe. The problem is the definition of emergency in the habitats directive is that it is continuous. They were able to use the jet engines that were put in because we could run out of electricity at any time of the year; that was used under the habitats directive as an emergency. Unfortunately - the witnesses might say fortunately - the water goes down sometimes, so it is not an emergency the next day. That is the definition of this under the European Court of Justice, ECJ, and the lot.

Politicians can promise the sun, moon and stars, but I am being straight-up with the witnesses that unless the habitats directive is addressed and politicians wake up to the nature restoration law, it will affect every person in the west of Ireland, Offaly and many parts of the midlands. People do not realise. Mr. Silke will recall the day when we were told that if we had a hopper, the turf-cutting thing would not affect us. Is that right? Ten years later, helicopters and gardaí were going around the bogs. I am telling people straight-up that this has to be done properly. We welcome the money, though as Mr. Broderick said, money does not solve a problem but actions do. One will not stop all flooding, and let no one say it will be stopped, but one can help in many situations. Some of the witnesses are probably in the scheme with the national parks to make the area a better place or such. Mr. Silke talked about the wildlife disappearing. We welcome the bits that are kept but we do not know what is kept, if we are honest. I do not know all the ins and outs of it because the nitty-gritty and small print are not out there yet.

Do we know if the River Suck or the Little Brosna river is in it? The number of people referred to is about 200. That suggests it would be along the Shannon Callows, going down towards Roosky and along the callows to the lough. Maybe I am wrong and I hope I am. It would be great if the Minister clarified about the Little Brosna and the Suck. When the Shannon is full and going out on someone's land, the Suck is full and going out on someone else's land around Athleague, in Ballinasloe, Ballyforan and everywhere along. While everyone welcomes the money and there is no point in saying we do not welcome it, and it is great that this piece has been kept, we need to make sure it goes to the other people. We have a bigger issue. The Minister can throw money at something. The Government is giving money to it, which we have to commend. We have a more significant problem.

The witnesses are not alone where they are. Look at Midleton, Lough Funshinagh, Kylemore, or right around this country. If you are trying to put an airplane in the air, build a road, bring in a boat or build a house, you are caught up in red tape. Unless that is addressed, we will never get the habitats directive. We have been at this for years. The only thing I can see is that someone might finally cop on that we are getting so much rain, and let no one say that we are not, and that we had better do something because this is not working out. There is a problem in that some people would rather see the witnesses' land flooded and tell them that they are carbon farming and they could put water buffalos on it rather than have cattle or sheep on it. That is it and I will not promise the witnesses anything.