Mr. Paul O'Brien:

I thank the Deputy for her question. There is an Act that deals with hedgerows and how they are to be cut and managed. We ask committee members to work to bring forward legislation to provide that hedgerows cannot be cut to within an inch of their lives. There should be guidelines and documentation, if not law, to ensure hedgerows cannot be cut right down to the roots, which means that they have no chance of growing again. We need criteria governing how they are to be cut. Cutting should not be allowed that does not meet the criteria as hedgerows are being destroyed.

We also ask the committee to curtail the use of pesticides. They are being used by gardeners who might only have a couple of dandelions in their gardens. They are using what they think is the best chemical in the world, namely, Roundup or other neonicocides, but the damage they cause is unbelievable. We have a good working relationship with the farming community and ask them to notify beekeepers in their area when they are about to undertake spraying. We know and accept that they have to spray their crops, but if they tell us when they are about to do it, we can keep bees in on that day. We can close the door and not let them out. In that way, they will not come in contact with pesticides and die. However, under legislation there is no onus on the farming community to tell us.

These are little things, but they can make a big difference. We know that farmers and landowners have to make money. In the next round of CAP payments it could be stipulated that hedgerows must be protected according to certain criteria and that spraying is notifiable to beekeepers in an area. There are 63 beekeeper associations in the country and it would take only one e-mail to tell beekeepers in an area that Mr. Browne or Mrs. Browne is going to spray tomorrow morning. In that way, beekeepers in the locality could protect their bees. These are simple measures, but farmers will not do them on their own. They will need a gentle push or encouragement, whichever is the more effective.