Dr. Marie Archbold:

I am just pointing that out to show the quick response. On improvements, obviously there are lags across policy into implementation. Once there is implementation to measure on the ground, then it depends on the soil thickness. In Curtins Farm, in Cork, which is on karst, for example, you would see a very quick response to measures because there is a very quick pathway down to the water bodies, whereas on thicker soil, which was still free-draining, it could be anything between, say, five to ten years. The response can take from probably a few months up to years. It goes back to our mantra that it is all about location and targeting the right measure in the right place at the right time. Things like the EIP and all the other life projects are all responding to this.

The Senator asked whether enough time was given to the midterm review. The Commission has always told us that we have to demonstrate an improvement in water quality where we are not achieving our environmental objective and show we are maintaining stability where we are achieving our environmental objective. We did not show that in the midterm review.