Results 5,241-5,260 of 23,948 for speaker:Charlie McConalogue

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: It is one item that is being reviewed as part of it, and I acknowledge the Cathaoirleach’s view and concern about this. From a policy point of view, we wish to see, and are seeing, a significant increase in respect of hedgerows and that is what we want to improve. The current 500 m threshold is significant, so we will review what constitutes an appropriate threshold.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: Yes. We are committed to having that finalised by the third quarter of this year. There has been a request for it, and it is something on which I will have to engage at Government level in respect of the funding aspects and anything we agree. By quarter 3, we will bring clarity to what we plan to do. To give as much clarity as possible in the meantime, I have made clear that 2022 will be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: This relates to a regulation under the National Parks and Wildlife Service, so it is very much focused on accommodating wildlife, in particular birdlife, and it is crucial that that coincide with hedge cutting and burning such that there will not be any impact on birds' nesting, habitats and so on. If there were to be any impact, we should fully reflect on it. The 1 March deadline is there...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: I thank the Deputy and acknowledge this is an area in which she has significant background and expertise. We do not have a target at the moment for the marine environment in the context of emissions reductions. The action plan drafting process strongly indicated the marine sector overall could be called on to contribute to the 5.25 megatonne carbon equivalent of annual emissions reduction....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: There is a blend there, I believe. There are obligations on us but we would also have options within that. My understanding is that there is a blend.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: That is crucial in how we set our catches, not only in what the quotas might be for the full catch or allocated catch for the year but also how it is actually caught and that we do that in a sustainable way. It is fair to say we have a bit of a way to go with this but we have come a long way. It is certainly the case that in the past we did not have the same knowledge or understanding to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: We have a lot more work to do to establish our national position on rewetting. That work is under way and will form a key part of phase 2 of the land use review. Much of the scientific understanding and assessment that we are working off at the moment is international and is not specific to our own situation. We have to fully understand our own situation. Compared to other European...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: We are using some of our just transition funds this year to support some of those projects. However, I accept the point that the Deputy is making.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: It is 2,500 ha.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: That is right.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: No. It is one aspect of it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: We do. State agencies like Coillte and Bord na Móna also have the capacity to contribute to that. We also have an EIP project in the midlands which will be availing of just transition funding and which we expect to make significant progress and contribute to that as well.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: We are getting a full assessment at the moment of exactly what our land profile is, where the peat-based soils are and particularly where the drained peat-based soils are because we do not have a very accurate overview of that currently. That is going to be important as regards clarifying what the Cathaoirleach is looking for. In the meantime we have other work under way, whether it be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: I agree. Some of this is rewetting and then there is also restoration. The research on this is still evolving, as are the nature restoration laws that will be coming at European level. It is important that we get the definitions right in order to properly provide the flexibility for us to deal with this appropriately.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: We can come back with further detail on how the rewetting aspect is going to step out. ACRES is going to deliver from an emissions production point of view and a big objective in ACRES is also the biodiversity piece. While they are doing a lot of work in the biodiversity space, some of those measures do not necessarily translate into emissions reductions but it is massively important work...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: I will get the Senator some figures on ACRES specifically on what our expected contribution is from an emissions reduction point of view.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: Okay.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: I accept there was concern about the Gresham House deal. I engaged very closely on the matter with all parties and representatives, the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine and Coillte at the time. It was important to contextualise what was agreed and the commitment Coillte signed up to over five years. It involves 700 ha of new afforestation a year for five years, which...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: There are no chemicals used that do not have a full safety track record. This is not a discussion I have had directly with Coillte but I can ask a member of my team to revert to the Deputy with a response and more detail. The officials are not in a position to contribute to the meeting.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: I do not have the answer to the Senator's second question.