Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is important to note that there were hours and hours of this in the Seanad. Teachta Dalaí are the only people who can take part in the next phase of this operation, Committee Stage of the Bill. That will involve any Teachta Dalaí who wishes to take part. It is important to focus on that because I suggested that this consultation take place before the Bill came in. It will probably be the last round. Obviously, if we make amendments they will have to go back to the Seanad. This will be the last full out-of-face look at the Bill.

I am keen to deal with the burning issue first. The burning issue is different from the hedge cutting in that the technology for burning hills has been there since the earth was created and since uplands came about. It is interesting to note that Ó Raifteiri's poem about Eanach Dhúin refers to "Loscadh sléibhe agus scalladh cléibhe ar an áit ar éagadar". That is exactly burning of the hills. It is the same term as the term we used to report what happened last summer. This has been happening, naturally in some cases and on purpose in others, and has been a hill management technique for a long time. What we know is that even though it has been happening, the birds survived until recent times. In fact, the big decline happened in recent times. Farmers doing this in a controlled fashion are in line with sustainable ecology.

I remember when destocking took place. We warned that the hills would get woody. That would bring all the problems all the deputations alluded to, but that have nothing to do with this Bill, that is, illegal burning, accidental or deliberate, in April, May and June - in the dry seasons. The places became too woody and the least thing could set them off. When they are set off, as we saw last year, it can cover acres of land.

The question we have to consider when looking at this Bill is whether controlled burning in March would cause far less damage and reduce the risk more significantly than stopping burning altogether. Any talk of burning most of our hills in January or February is a non-starter because of the weather. They should be allowed go up of their own accord or otherwise but not by the landowner later on when the seasons get dry. They become dry at that stage. That could be caused by as simple a thing as someone leaving a bottle behind on a mountain and the sun getting to it and setting it off like a tinder box.

In looking at the provision, I will be considering where the best management tool lies. It is relevant not only for the use of land but also in terms of the ecology, the environment and the natural habitats. I am told where I live that the biggest threat to the curlew, the crotach glórach that Pearse referred to in his poem, is a little mammal called the mink which is in the wild.

Perhaps we need a programme to deal with mink. This is a particular problem on islands and lakes where mink swim in areas where foxes cannot.The big difference is that we know what was sustainable in the past. If we could return to that, the issue would be dealt with.

The original proposal in the Bill was to allow hedge cutting in August on every side of a field. Fianna Fáil took that on board at that stage. Farming organisations lobbied us to go back on part of that and we will listen to every side of the argument. We thought that was unnecessary and was in the interests of contractors rather than wildlife. We said cutting should be limited to roadsides. In most cases section 70 of the Wildlife Act is not practical. The most interesting contribution today came from Mr. Swan who said that in a former day job, discretion was used when farmers cut 100 yards in each direction having left fields in which they were cutting silage. There is no question that that involved breaking the law because no local authority sanctioned the practice, but prosecutions did not happen. I like his honesty because that is happening throughout the country. People think that rural roads allow two cars to pass, but many are like a railway line with one track on which only one car at a time can travel. The reality is that people cut back the bushes on such roads in June, July and August. If they did not do so, the danger would be overwhelming. Allowing such activity in August is reasonable.

I would love to see scientific evidence that nature is so stupid that it keeps reproducing in vulnerable parts of roadside hedges and birds keep building nests. The birds in my area use man-made objects to nest under roofs and eaves. They seem to be savvy about what to do and not to do. I am not convinced that they are always nesting in roadside hedges. I am not an expert. A lot of nature seems to adapt fairly quickly. I wish to make clear that these are the issues we will be considering. We restricted the Bill hugely.

I have prepared an amendment to delete section 8 because it is not what I believe in. I promised to do so on Second Stage. I want to test whether my reading of the Bill is the correct or incorrect reading. I understand that if section 8 was not in the Bill, the particular section would not be operable during the relevant month. All it does is return things to the status quo. I understand it allows section 70 cutting to take place on the order of a local authority, but does not change in any way the requirement for a local authority to permit a person to do the cutting. Rather, it allows a local authority to give permission. As I said, we will test that on Committee Stage. The Minister will be here. If I am satisfied that the Chairman is right and she is wrong, we will delete the section or amend it on Report Stage. If I am satisfied, having listened to the Minister, that the advice of the Attorney General is as I have read it, namely, that it only restores the status quo, I will withdraw my amendment. I want to be clear about my approach. To be sure, I have prepared an amendment.