Mr. Richard Cronin:

We have a lot of information to hand, including the information I access in the decision-making we do. The other branches of Government, which have different responsibilities, also gather a lot of information. This information is shared very openly. In the environmental assessments we do, we rely on information provided by others. Will it take 13 months? I cannot honestly answer that question. I do not control the programme to develop a new approach to offshore renewables. If it can be done faster, I am sure it will be done faster, but I cannot honestly say to the Senator whether it will take the full 13 months. I can only go on the information available to me.

The Senator mentioned actions and mitigation measures. Part of the cycle of managing the marine environment is an assessment phase where we carry out scientific assessments involving whether it is good or bad and whether we are satisfied with it. We set targets based on what a better situation should look like and we have monitoring programmes. As part of the phase we are starting in 2022 under the marine strategy framework directive, we will develop measures to manage human activity. It is under those measures that we can ensure any of the sectors we are considering carries out its activities and protects the marine environment at the same time. That is the key instrument we use not just in Ireland but across all the other member states of the EU to gather all the measures. From the work we have done on that, every single human activity in the marine environment is well regulated. Nobody is doing things outside of a regulatory framework. The effectiveness of that regulation is something for me constantly to consider. We think there is space for improvement, which is why we want to have marine protected areas in place. We think it is a piece of the jigsaw that is missing.