Senator Pippa Hackett:

The map that we provide is indicative. Every site has to be walked by a forestry inspector and maybe be the subject of a subsequent examination by an ecologist, hydrologist, specialist, scientist or ornithologist. These maps are indicative, and every site needs to be walked. Taking the map and ruling something in or out straight away might not necessarily be correct. As the Deputy knows, the licensing system is robust. It is onerous but it is better than it was. It is working much more effectively. However, those sites still need to be walked. That is what happens.

Peat depth was the subject of a strong ask from the Commission. The original ask was a 10 cm requirement, which rules out almost all of the land in Ireland. We reached an agreement to increase that to 30 cm. Previously, it was 50 cm. It is a change but the change is necessary for a number of reasons, particularly in terms of carbon emissions from soils that are greater than 30 cm in depth.

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