Mr. Mark Horton:

No, we are not going to introduce the beaver. However, wood debris in small channels and leaky dams slow the flow of water, do not create barriers to fish, the removal of which we are discussing at this meeting, and create habitat refuges for wildlife. They also build climate resilience within catchments. Networks of nature-based solutions can provide considerable benefits – not just environmental ones, but also societal ones.

Many of these opportunities lie on privately owned land and those landowners would need to be compensated for delivering public services for a public good. This is something that we will need to consider in terms of our agri-environmental schemes.

However, there are barriers to employing nature-based solutions, not least the fact the public and, in many cases, parts of State agencies and so on do not necessarily understand their benefits or how to install them. It is difficult to argue with the public that we should not drain a river to prevent flooding and should instead plant some trees and install leaky dams. This will involve education around how we need to better integrate nature-based solutions into catchment management. They do not just benefit flood reduction or water retention in drought conditions, but also the fish species in the rivers. The Bandon is a freshwater pearl mussel river. The freshwater pearl mussel is a globally endangered species that needs protection. Nature-based solutions can bring multiple benefits to fish species, other wildlife, the economy and society as a whole.