Mr. Niall Curley:

I understand what the Senator is talking about regarding poaching but the definition is not necessarily a definition with regard to the two different types of agricultural use that will make a difference in respect of how Ireland puts in place the measure. I understand what the Senator is saying but ploughing the land releases a lot more carbon than poaching. Poaching breaks the soil to a certain extent but ploughing goes deeper. Arable land is preferred because it is regularly ploughed, harrowed and seeded, perhaps with a two-year rotation. This is not the case with pastureland, however. The latter and wet land in general may be poached and have its own issues owing to tractors, for example, but the same amount of carbon will not be released. Rewetted pastureland will retain a larger amount of carbon because it entails a different type of agricultural activity being reduced or altered, if that makes sense.