Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I am pleased to have the opportunity to update the House on the progress of the National Parks and Wildlife Service, NPWS. The biodiversity emergency is among our greatest challenges, if not the greatest. Over the past 100 years, generations of Irish people have seen a gradual dimming of the variety of life, a greying out of the diversity of species and habitats and a silencing of the abundance of nature. While the change has been rapid from a biodiversity point of view, it has been slow from a human perspective and snail-paced from an electoral point of view. The issue has never, until now, been seen as urgent and important.

My commitment to elevating the issue of nature and biodiversity in this House is well known. Under the Government's leadership, Ireland has taken unprecedented steps forward to advance its protection, conservation and restoration approach. Chief among these was the decision to equip the National Parks and Wildlife Service with the funding, staffing and structural transformation it needed to unlock the potential for biodiversity action across the Government and the State as a whole.

My most immediate task was resourcing. Since I became Minister of State, I have delivered significant increases in the NPWS's budget allocation, from €28.7 million in 2020 to €53 million in 2023, excluding payroll. Combined with funding from EU LIFE programmes and other biodiversity resourcing, this gives us an effective budget for nature of approximately €90 million this year. It is a huge achievement of which the Government rightly should be proud. I have increased NPWS staff numbers from 320 in 2020 to almost 500 today. Payroll for this year is up almost 20% on 2022, which is funding the recruitment necessary to drive change. Recruitment is ongoing for key staff across specialist ecology roles, including marine ecology, ecohydrology and ornithology, as well as rangers and general operatives. We are on track to increase the number of conservation rangers to 120 by next spring.

We need more than money and people to deliver real, systemic change. The programme for Government committed us to reviewing the remit and status of the NPWS. That review was completed in spring 2022 and delivered a series of recommendations to renew the organisation and make it more resilient, more effective and better equipped to meet the challenges of the 21st century. A total of 46 actions were outlined in a three-year process through a strategic action plan. The plan was supported by the Government and backed with a €55 million investment over three budgetary cycles. The Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, and I are proud that, one year on, we are making strong progress on implementation. Just two weeks ago, we published a progress report outlining the work to date, with the overwhelming majority of actions shown to be on track.

A number of key milestones have been achieved. The NPWS is now an executive agency under the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. It has undergone a full organisational restructuring along functional lines, with six new directorates and nine geographic divisions. It has a dedicated management committee comprising the director general and senior directors at principal officer level who are responsible for each directorate. It has also published a strategic plan outlining the mission, values and strategic goals that will guide the NPWS until the end of 2025. That is a key action in the action plan.

There is more going on behind the scenes. At policy level, the fourth national biodiversity action plan has been in development since October 2021. I expect the final version to be published before the end of this year. It will set the national biodiversity agenda for the period 2023 to 2030 and aims to deliver the actions needed to value and protect nature. Crucially, it takes account of the EU biodiversity strategy, the Kunming-Montreal global biodiversity framework that was adopted at COP15 last year, as well as relevant national policies such as the Common Agricultural Policy strategic plan, the climate action plan and the river basin management plan, among others. It also addresses the recommendations of the Citizens' Assembly on Biodiversity Loss and the children and young people's assembly on biodiversity loss.

Stakeholder engagement has been central to the iterative development of the fourth national biodiversity action plan, NBAP. Information sessions, workshops and bilateral discussions have taken place with a range of Government bodies and stakeholders. A public consultation was launched in September 2022 that drew a wide range of passionate, informed and constructive views from across society.

In terms of legislation, work is ongoing to update and consolidate the Wildlife Act and the birds and habitats regulations, with a focus on deterrence and improving the enforceability of biodiversity laws. This process will, of course, include public consultation. Separately, the Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2016 was back in the Dáil yesterday, providing for changes to the network of raised bog protected areas, putting the national biodiversity action plan on a statutory footing and placing a biodiversity duty on Departments and public bodies. In addition, we are undertaking a review of the open seasons order and public consultation has taken place on the wild birds declaration.

Wildlife protection is fundamental to the work of the NPWS and the organisation has never been more focused and effective in tackling it. A dedicated directorate for wildlife enforcement and nature protection is now established and staff are working across all regions of the country to address wildlife crime. The Department currently has 69 prosecution cases on hand for alleged breaches of wildlife legislation. A joint protocol between the NPWS and An Garda Síochána has been in place since 2021. We are building a close and effective working relationship with An Garda Síochána and other relevant enforcement agencies. Recently, a successful joint training exercise was held between the Garda in Donegal and the NPWS relating to birds of prey prosecutions.

At a local level, the NPWS is making enormous progress by rolling out the new biodiversity officers programme across the country, thereby creating a vital link between national policy and local delivery. We are further supporting this link through the local biodiversity action fund, the allocation for which I increased from €1.2 million in 2022 to €3 million in 2023. The fund enables local authorities to carry out biodiversity-related projects supporting actions in the national biodiversity action plan. It is an important part of how we engage with communities. This year, all 31 local authorities applied for and will receive funding, with a total of 186 projects approved, including invasive alien species control, dune restoration, wetland surveys and biodiversity awareness and training.

At the operational level, an information and communications technology transformation project is under way to deliver a fit-for-purpose ICT platform that allows for better integration and sharing of data and improved efficiencies. One example of this is the processing of licences through the eLicensing portal.

Also fundamental to our work is the continued investment in our national parks and nature reserves. These special places are at the core of the work of the National Parks and Wildlife Service. Their ongoing management, for the millions of people who visit them and the incredible wildlife that inhabits them, is a cornerstone of our efforts to protect nature. In Killarney National Park, a new fire plan containing all the key elements to enable a rapid, co-ordinated response, in conjunction with the local emergency services, is in place. More than 20 NPWS staff have received fire training and now have access to full fire personal protective equipment, PPE, portable water pumps, a 4 x 4 firefighting vehicle and a helicopter. Early fire detection systems are also in place. We have a new satellite link for fire and smoke detection. A monitoring station will be installed at Lord Brandon's Cottage, with a tower that gives unparalleled views over sensitive locations at which fires have previously occurred. I saw this at first hand on a visit to Killarney some weeks ago.

It really is an incredible, co-ordinated effort. Through the Killarney National Park liaison committee, the NPWS is also engaging with a volunteer group that does patrols to further support early detection. International collaboration with peers in the USA, Canada, Australia and the UK is also ongoing to ensure best practice on fire prevention, detection and control. We are also progressing an in-depth empirical study into the ecological impacts of the 2021 fire that devastated vast swathes of the park. This study is assessing the damage and helping us to understand how habitats and populations of species are recovering and it will inform future management. It is fair to say that lessons have been learned.

In addition to this, staff at Killarney National Park are doing exceptional work to tackle the invasive rhododendron that is choking the woodlands and inhibiting their natural regeneration. A new rhododendron eradication plan is very nearly complete. It is the product of two years’ work with a team of consultants to define systems, methods and approaches for long-term management. It is currently being peer-reviewed and is due for publication this autumn. The plan is underpinned by a new geographic information system, GIS, monitoring system that provides a living dataset to prioritise and target clearance works. Staff and contractors are currently mapping the status of rhododendron infestations across the park’s 53 zones. The mapping of 12 of these zones is completed while work on ten more is under way. Over the past six months, over 1,000 acres of old oak woodland has been cleared of rhododendron regrowth as part of a follow-up after initial clearance. I recently visited to see some of this work at first hand and it is really quite impressive. Another large area will be eradicated later this year, in line with the eradication plan. This strategic data-led approach to the long-term management of rhododendron is extremely positive news for Killarney and for the myriad species that call this place home. It is a battle we are determined to win.

We are also tackling the deer populations that have such damaging impacts on our vulnerable native woodlands. In Killarney, research to establish density and population data in the park is ongoing. This work is informing the targeting of control measures through a strict culling programme that has seen 600 deer dispatched since 2020, as well as habitat protection measures, including fencing for the most sensitive habitats such as old sessile oak woodland, yew woodland and alluvial wet woodland to allow these to regenerate, which is really important.

In Wicklow Mountains National Park, staff are routinely engaged in actively preventing some of the most damaging activities in the national park and special area of conservation. Measures include deer control, fire prevention and work to prevent the erosion of sensitive upland habitats. All staff are now fully equipped and trained in relation to firefighting in upland environments and active patrolling by conservation staff is helping to discourage illegal burning and the use of all-terrain vehicles, ATVs. Illegal ATV use is prosecuted and, in 2023, three successful cases have been brought before the courts. A range of bog restoration projects are exploring novel approaches to rehabilitate damaged peatlands, including large-scale restoration works on active blanket bog at Liffey Head and a significant 2,000 ha biodiversity restoration project at Glenasmole that will support nature-based solutions for the River Dodder. Woodland creation and management projects are also under way at Glendalough and at other sites throughout the park.

In our farthest-flung and, arguably, most dramatically beautiful national park, Glenveagh, County Donegal, 2,000 native Scots pine trees bred from Irish genetic material have been planted as part of a broader suite of measures to improve native woodland habitat creation. In addition to this, hundreds of hectares of rhododendron are currently being cleared from the hillsides and, once this work is complete, a native woodland establishment programme will get under way alongside an integrated deer management programme.

In addition to this, we are continuing the successful reintroduction programmes that have so captured the public’s imagination. Our white-tailed eagle programme is part of a long-term initiative to re-establish a population of this iconic, and once extinct, species and it is working. In recent years, we have seen the first Irish-bred female eagle to fledge young in over 100 years and this year saw the first Irish-bred male to successfully fledge a chick since the reintroduction programme began. This summer, we will also begin to reintroduce the spectacular osprey, which was once common in Ireland, bringing another keystone species to our skies, raising conservation awareness and inspiring people for years to come. Alongside this core ecology work, we are also improving facilities, signage, interpretation and education and developing and maintaining new and existing trails and walkways to improve the visitor experience and safety across the entire network. We are also advancing visitor centre plans at Coole Park, Connemara, the Burren and more.

This is just a selection of the work under way in our national parks and nature reserves. If I had the rest of the day to speak, I would go on in endless detail about the enormous rehabilitation and restoration efforts under way to transform Wild Nephin National Park and to improve habitat conditions in Connemara National Park, the Burren National Park, Glengarriff Nature Reserve, the Raven Nature Reserve, and so many others across the country. Instead, I suggest that Deputies visit some these amazing places, if they get some time over the summer break, that they meet some of our NPWS staff and talk to them about the work taking place on the ground in these really special places.

Beyond the lands in my ownership, the NPWS is making truly Herculean efforts to protect and restore nature in the wider countryside through dedicated programmes that collaborate with communities and reward landowners to protect and restore habitats such as blanket bog, raised bog, machair, species-rich grasslands, eskers, coastal dunes, fens, turloughs and fixed dunes and to conserve endangered species like corncrake, curlew and my own personal favourite, the natterjack toad, with dedicated teams of ecologists and rangers sometimes working around the clock to protect a single nest.

Furthermore, I expect that we will have around 300 NPWS farm plans operational and paid in 2023 through an investment of €2.37 million. These farm plans are highly valued by the farming community and I remind everyone that the 2023 farm plan scheme is currently open and accepting applications up to 4 August. I encourage anyone interested in participating in the scheme to make an application. The farm plan scheme really is transformative. It is very popular and many of the landowners and farmers I meet who are in the scheme really value it and become true champions for nature conservation on their own lands.

This is but a small selection of our work, all of which is underpinned by scientific advice through the monitoring and research programmes that our staff carry out on an ongoing basis in all corners of the country, across all habitats and, indeed, in all weathers. It is in the context of all of this that I would like to address the recent ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union, CJEU. Last week, the CJEU issued its judgment against Ireland in what is known as the measures case, which concerns the implementation of the habitats directive. The directive requires Ireland to identify a network of sites, Natura 2000 sites, where important or endangered animal or plant species or certain rare or vulnerable habitat types are present. Based on our initial reading, the court found against Ireland on three grounds, namely, the designation of sites, the identification of site-specific conservation objectives and the implementation of conservation measures. The court dismissed a number of aspects of the Commission’s case and did not find that a persistent or systemic breach of Ireland’s obligations under the directive had occurred. It is important to note that this judgment refers to the position in January 2019 and that very significant progress on the designation of sites has been made since that date with 95% of our Natura 2000 sites now covered by statutory instrument and the remaining 15 on track to be completed before the end of this year. Of those sites covered by the case, 100% now have site-specific conservation objectives in place and extraordinary work is being done all across the country and in the NPWS itself on the development and implementation of conservation measures. We will take time to consider the judgment in detail and develop a plan of action to address any aspects on which we still have work to do.

My aim today was to demonstrate that this Government has delivered an NPWS that is more resilient, better resourced and better equipped to fulfil its mission to protect nature and play its part in Ireland’s response to the biodiversity emergency on the national and international stage. Let us be honest; it is badly needed. The scientific evidence documenting the loss of nature in recent years has really been indisputable. Far too many of the key indicators are going in the wrong direction. We have made the first steps towards addressing this but if we do not continue to bring about improvements, we could face further infringement action from the EU with the potential for heavy fines and, what is worse, the irreversible loss of our natural heritage. Species only go extinct once. I am firmly of the view that we should invest now and do everything in our power to avoid these outcomes.

If I may, I will reiterate that this is precisely why the nature restoration law is so important. Yesterday’s vote of 121 to nine in favour of the Government amendment in support of the law was a compelling and definitive indication of this House’s support for our natural world. I thank all parties and Deputies who supported that amendment. The National Parks and Wildlife Service is absolutely central to the delivery of that ambition and, as the House has heard, we have taken the first steps to ensure it is empowered to do so. We must continue this trajectory. Before I finish, I will pay tribute to all of the team in the National Parks and Wildlife Service across the country from general operatives to park rangers and our scientific staff.

Over the past three years I have met the most dedicated people. These are people who will literally sit and protect a curlew's nest 24-7 to ensure the chicks hatch. It is that level of dedication, which these people have consistently provided, that we have tried to support over the past couple of years. We have tried to give that support in a tangible way, to ensure they feel valued, and do not feel isolated when they are out on a bog site or a nature reserve. What we have done over the past three years, for them as well as for nature, has been truly transformative. However, there is no doubt we have to go a distance further if we are to achieve the collective ambition in this House to protect and restore nature.

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