Ms Oonagh Duggan:

I thank the Cathaoirleach, Deputies and Senators for the invitation to present the views of BirdWatch Ireland on aspects of the 2022 nitrates action programme, NAP. We intend to focus specifically on the changes in the programme relating to arable land and winter stubbles given effect by the good agricultural practice regulations as amended and our concerns for wild bird species as a result of these changes.

From an overarching perspective, BirdWatch Ireland is very concerned with the poor and declining status of many of Ireland’s water bodies. Good water quality is not only critical for human consumption, but many wild bird species also need it as part of their life cycle. On 9 May 2019, Dáil Éireann declared a biodiversity as well as a climate emergency. It is critical that when proposing solutions to address one environmental problem, we do not create another one or make one worse.

The 2022 change to the nitrates action programme required tillage farmers in 14 counties to shallow cultivate soils post harvest and to eliminate 75% to 80% of their winter stubbles to reduce nitrate loss to water bodies. Stubbles are the six inches of stalk left after harvest of a crop on arable land. Seed is often spilled and left in the fields during the harvesting process and becomes a winter food source for wild bird species like linnet, goldfinch, and skylark. Birds of prey such as hen harrier, barn owl and kestrel are known to forage over winter stubbles and prey on the small birds and mammals. This has been a positive farmer-bird relationship for as long as arable crops have been cultivated. Stubbles do not equal bare soil and the seeds on top of the soil often green up during the winter period without any cultivation. Shallow cultivation results in seeds being turned into the soil making them completely unavailable to wild birds but the seed germination absorbs nitrogen that would otherwise be lost from the soil to the environment.

BirdWatch Ireland is very seriously concerned about this requirement because of the effects the measure could have on wild bird species many of which are already red- or amber-listed birds of conservation concern. BirdWatch Ireland staff engaged with both the Department of agriculture and the Department of housing on this requirement and sent a submission outlining the evidence in the scientific literature of the importance of winter stubbles for birds.

Between 1998 and 2021 there has been a 45% increase in the number of farmland birds on the red list of birds of conservation concern in Ireland. Most of these species were once common and widespread. These include birds of arable farmland like the yellowhammer. It is important to state that one bird of arable land in Ireland already became extinct, the corn bunting.

A recent satellite tracking study of hen harriers in Ireland revealed a low first-year survival rate with only 17.7% of individuals in the study surviving to their first year. This study also showed how young hen harriers disperse after they leave the nest and the habitats they use. The findings appear to show that arable landscapes are important areas for young hen harriers in the early months of their independence. Together with dietary analysis, stubble fields appear to be an important habitat for autumn and winter foraging by hen harriers, likely contributing to the higher survival rate of birds that utilise these areas.

Article 6.3 of the habitats directive requires that a plan or project shall be subject to an appropriate assessment of its implications for the Natura site in view of the site's conservation objectives. We have not seen any published Government ecological assessment of the impacts of the green cover winter stubble measure on hen harrier special protected areas, or on sites important for other Annex 1 wintering birds as required by Article 6.3.

In addition, changes were made to Ireland’s CAP strategic plan at a very late stage in 2022 to reflect the new nitrates action programme rules but in this instance arable farmers anywhere in Ireland, and not just the farmers in the 14 counties listed in the NAP, are financially incentivised in the ACRES general winter stubble measure to shallow cultivate as per the nitrates action programme and to leave 20% to 25% winter stubble. Again, we have seen no evidence of any assessment of the ecological impacts of this change on wild birds especially protected bird species.

The Government's climate action plan for 2023 sets out a target to increase the area of tillage land in this country by 52,000 ha to 400,000 ha by 2030 and yet the national tillage area is known to be declining. More tillage would be a good thing and a potential win for birds too if managed appropriately. We have national targets and legal requirements for water, climate and biodiversity yet the green cover requirement, while potentially a good action to address nitrate leaching from arable land, could be devastating for wild birds. Government needs to ensure more joined-up thinking on how we are addressing the environmental problems we face to avoid serious unintended consequences.

We are calling on Government to amend the GAP regulations to rescind the shallow cultivation clause, until there is a proper assessment and consideration of the effects of such a change on our wild bird species. The research to understand the effects of these changes is just being initiated by Teagasc and it would make sense to wait until the findings are available to inform the policy as opposed to continuing with measures which are very likely damaging. I will now hand over to my colleague Paul Moore.