Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No.147:

In page 64, between lines 25 and 26, to insert the following: “(iii) the maritime usage is authorised in accordance with time limited development milestones as set out by the Minister requiring operations to begin within a defined period post consent.”.

This is a significant part of the legislation. The Opposition has a number of concerns, which have also been part of the wider public debate. This could be a good opportunity for the Minister of State to respond to some of those concerns on the record. Our understanding, and as the officials and the Minister of State have explained to us before, is that the maritime area consent is not a grant of permission. It is a grant to allow somebody to move towards the application for a planning permission at a later stage. However, there seems to be an inference from that that the granting of a maritime area consent, MAC, is not in of itself an environmental decision, but more a procedural one.

We have all had conversations with organisations very concerned with protecting the biodiversity of our coastlines. In short, those representing fishermen. Some of their activities have already been disrupted by offshore wind companies that are now actively engaging in what would ordinarily be the process at the MAC stage, such as starting exploratory studies, etc. It is very important for us to fully understand the nature of this process, but also, once someone gets a MAC, what the obligations are. Can a MAC holder just squat and sit on it for a period? Are there development milestones - and this is what the amendment specifically speaks to - that would have to be reached in order to demonstrate that a MAC holder is progressing his or her intention to move towards a formal planning application at a later stage?

There is a related matter, which is that while the assumption of the Department seems to be that the granting of a MAC is not, in and of itself, an environmental decision. There are environmental impacts from what a MAC holder may do, on the sea bed, for example, if that holder is conducting certain types of studies or engaged in certain types of activities. Again, how that is measured is very important.

Likewise, elsewhere in these sections, there is mention of the possibility of restorative provisions whereby certain types of damage may be done by the holder of a MAC in advance of submitting an application for planning permission. If I read those sections correctly, if conditions are applied to MACs, including the need to restore aspects of the marine environment depending on what has been done to them in the intervening period, does that not suggest that there are environmental impacts? If so, how do we make sure that they are properly monitored and that where problems may arise - hopefully, none will - appropriate enforcement action will be taken during the MAC stage and before the formal application seeking permission to develop?