Ms Laura Burke:

As I have family in Leitrim, I certainly appreciate its beauty. We need to ensure that any new activity that commences does not undermine what we currently have, which is a very good quality environment in Ireland. That has an intrinsic value in its own right, as I am sure this committee is aware, but it also has a very important value for tourism and agricultural industries. We have talked about water resources, which are predicted to assume increased strategic importance to Ireland, and we need to protect these resources. Any action that is taken into the future cannot undermine our water quality or other industries. Again, it goes back to evidence-based decision making. We need to complete the research in order to help us base any decision into the future. Of course, we must take local factors into consideration. That is the reason why the EPA on the steering committee in respect of the research and organisations like the Commission for Energy Regulation and An Bord Pleanála are involved, all of which have their own distinct regulatory roles in this regard.