Malcolm Byrne (Wicklow-Wexford, Fianna Fail)

I am happy this debate is taking place. As previous speakers said, nobody is in this House more committed to protecting our biodiversity and natural heritage than the Minister of State. I am appreciative of the work he does personally but I know he is committed to action and not just words. The decision by the former Minister Michael McGrath to establish the Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund will be seen as very significant, particularly to ensure resourcing of our commitments to the natural environment. With the forthcoming nature restoration plan, there will be active engagement with local communities. It is also critical to engage with farmers. I have always believed that farmers are our front-line workers in the campaign to ensure our biodiversity is protected.

The expansion of national parks is welcome. The Minister of State and I were very committed to the Conor Pass in Kerry becoming a national park, which came to pass. There is a campaign for the Blackstairs Mountains and Mount Leinster to become a national park. Councillor Barbara Anne Murphy in Bunclody regularly raises this issue. It is critical not just for biodiversity but for all of us to be able to enjoy those facilities.

Tara Hill is a beautiful area just north of Gorey. There are many habitats on the hill and all different kinds of flora and fauna, including a lot of Irish mammals like hares, foxes, red and grey squirrels, pygmy shrew and plenty of birds. The Minister of State is more than welcome to come birding on the hill. A lot of it has been mapped by the Tara Hill Community Development Association. As the Minister of State will be aware, on Sunday evening into Monday morning, there was a catastrophic gorse fire that swept across the hill. I pay tribute to the fire crews, emergency services and locals who battled it. While, fortunately, nobody was injured, there was quite a lot of damage to the ecosystem. The Minister of State will be aware of the damage these fires cause, not just on Tara Hill but throughout the country. I hope he will in due course meet the development association. We need to look at what supports can be put in place when gorse fires impact on areas of natural beauty and to support such rich ecosystems. It is critical that there is a strategy to try to prevent gorse fires and to restore the habitats after those incidents.

The other issue is the protection of our coasts. Our coastal communities are incredibly important as places for us to walk and enjoy and as significant contributors to biodiversity. While the Minister of State in west Cork and the Ceann Comhairle in south Wexford would make similar arguments, the constituency of Wicklow-Wexford has some of the finest beaches in the country where people can swim, walk and enjoy biodiversity, stretching down from Brittas Bay and Arklow north and south beach through Clogga, Kilpatrick, Ballymoney and Courtown, on to Cahore, Old Bawn, Ballinoulart and Morriscastle. I have not even named half of them. They are beautiful beaches and many Members will know them. A big challenge impacting on our enjoyment and biodiversity in the area is coastal erosion, not least because there is such a sandy coast. For most of the Wicklow and Wexford coast, the problem is sandy erosion. We need a strategy including beach nourishment programmes and to protect the ecosystems that live in and around our beaches. There are many active development groups and associations that would be happy to work with the Minister of State in that regard. Our beaches are critical to all our lives. The Minister of State and I know how much we love our coastal communities but the fear of coastal erosion, particularly because of climate change, is causing significant problems. I ask him to prioritise that matter.

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