Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Wednesday, 20 March 2024
Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine
Compliance with the Nitrates Directive and Implications for Ireland: Discussion (Resumed)
Joe Flaherty (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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The witnesses are not to take this as personal criticism, but I worry that we would go to the effort of doing the research to identify 700,000 ha and then hand over the ownership and not do anything with it other than give it to the co-operatives and expect that something is going to happen. It is alarming for that body of work, which was obviously a significant expense. As a Government, we have to say that we have to drive this. That is why I have a concern that this is across two Departments. Effectively, we do not know who owns this initiative to improve water quality. Significant, and I am sure exemplary, work was done. We have basically handed it over and we are not taking ownership. We are not tracking. Can we see whether there has been any progress?