Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I cannot agree more with Dr. Moran on our cultural connection and how we have lost it.

We have become very disconnected and see ourselves above nature as opposed to part of it. I worked with Aboriginal communities in Australia on water management and learned so much from them, including how they were part of nature and water. We could do a lot worse than listen to those voices and try to get some of that connection and understanding back.

Earlier hedgerows were mentioned. We have not really discussed hedgerows, which is surprising because they are an important part of our ecosystem. Hedgerows can, if we enable them, act as corridors that can crisscross the entire countryside. I have noticed that the hedgerows are full of berries and I have never seen as many. Yesterday, I saw a hedgecutter on one of the roads in County Wicklow completely cutting back hedges, which is legal as this is the cutting season. Has the citizens' assembly discussed extending the hedgecutting period or making the period more adaptive? I ask because our weather patterns are changing. If we stick rigidly to, say, a period from March to September, we will probably miss the whole purpose of having a non-cutting season. Did a discussion take place on adaptive responses or an extension? In the UK the hedgecutting season has been extended to November, thus enabling birds enough time to forage for food.