Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Wednesday, 21 February 2024
Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine
Compliance with the Nitrates Directive and Implications for Ireland: Discussion (Resumed)
Mr. Paul Moore:
They are hanging on in old land, I suppose. As Ms Duggan said, everything is a trade-off. I am by no means unique but I am in the unusual position of having had a foot in both camps for a long time. I have always said that at any meeting I went to there would be somebody I wanted to give a slap around the ear to, whether it was a BirdWatch Ireland meeting or a farmers' meeting. When we look at the value of biodiversity in general, it comes bottom of the list compared with climate change, air quality and water quality. It tends to come last and there is a feeling that that is what happened with this measure. It is a trade-off, absolutely.