Results 7,201-7,220 of 24,065 for speaker:Charlie McConalogue

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: EU Programmes (27 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: My Department's European Maritime and Fisheries Fund Programme 2014-20 made available €240.4 million for the sustainable development of our seafood sector. Since its adoption by the European Commission in December 2015 and formal launch in 2016, it has been a great success, distributing funding to support our seafood sector with capital investment, innovation, advisory services,...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Fishing Industry (27 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: The Seafood Task Force, which included representatives of the five fisheries producer organisations and the four main fisheries cooperatives, recommended in its October 2021 report that a voluntary decommissioning scheme should be implemented to help restore balance between fishing fleet capacity and available quotas, following the reductions in quotas arising from the EU/UK Trade and...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Brexit Supports (27 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: The terms of the Brexit Adjustment Reserve (BAR) are established by the European Union in Regulation (EU) 2021/1755. This includes that all expenditure funded by the BAR must be carried out within the defined reference period, which ends on 31 December 2023. The Regulation, as confirmed by the relevant authorities in the EU, does not provide for any flexibility in this timing.

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Sector (27 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: As the Deputy may be aware, an amendment to the Forestry Act 2014 has passed through the Houses of the Oireachtas through the vehicle of the Animal Health and Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2022. On 4 April 2022, the new legislation was signed into law by the president. This amendment was necessary to remove the licensing requirement for the planting of native woodland in areas not...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Sector (27 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: ACRES is Ireland's new agri-environment scheme proposed as part of Ireland's new CAP Strategic Plan for the 2023 to 2027 period. This new €1.5bn scheme will be farmer-friendly and designed to address biodiversity, climate, air and water quality challenges. ACRES will also provide income support for up to 50,000 farm families. ACRES applications will include a Farm Sustainability...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Schemes (27 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: The Organic Farming Scheme (OFS) is included in the CAP Strategic Plan (CSP). Due to the long-term nature of forestry, it is considered the best option to continue to deliver the Forestry Programme entirely separately from the CSP, subject to new State Aid rules rather than the requirements of the CSP regulations. Afforestation is recognised as contributing to the creation of a valuable...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Sector (27 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: I propose to take Questions Nos. 607 and 608 together. The Department's 'Standards for Felling and Reforestation' specifies the use of brash in creating and maintaining dense mats of brash and branch wood on all machine routes, to avoid soil damage, erosion and sedimentation. Brash mats are typically concentrated on primary routes and in the junction of extraction paths and landing sites....

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Departmental Funding (22 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: The recent Government agreement on Sectoral Emissions Ceilings has increased the ambition for the production of biomethane. As committed to as part of the Sectoral Emissions Ceilings agreement an obligation on the heat sector to include renewable heat will be introduced by 2024. The introduction of this Obligation will incentivise the use of renewable heat (including use of biomethane),...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Departmental Programmes (22 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: In recognising the important contribution of the Seafood Processing sector to job creation and economic growth in our coastal communities, I was pleased to announce the €45 million Brexit Seafood Processing Support Scheme on 12 May of this year. The scheme delivers on a recommendation of the Seafood Taskforce and offers grant rates of between 30% and 50% for capital investment in SME...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Fishing Industry (22 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: I am conscious of the significant increases in energy prices for the food production and processing sectors including those within the seafood sector. In July, I met with representative groups from the industry and discussed the impacts of the high fuel and energy prices on the profitability of fishing and seafood processing. The challenges facing the industry are concurrent with the impacts...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Renewable Energy Generation (21 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: Biomass covers a wide range of materials and processes including purpose grown energy crops, forest thinning, waste material and timber by-products. My Department supports the development of the biomass sector by providing a range of supports for the growing of biomass supply and wood mobilisation. The Afforestation Scheme 2014-2020 provides financial support to encourage the planting of...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Common Agricultural Policy (21 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: The Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) Regulation (Regulation EU 380/2013) provides that the European Commission will report to the European Parliament and the Council on the functioning of the CFP by the end of 2022. In December 2021, as the first step in the consultation process, the Commission launched online questionnaires relating to the review of both the CFP and the Regulation on the...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Sector (21 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: I propose to take Questions Nos. 160 to 162, inclusive, together. Lop-and-top or brash are terms given to the side branches and tops of trees that are normally cut from the main stem and left on site during harvesting operations. There is no licence requirement if a landowner wishes to remove some of this material from a site. The Department's 'Standards for Felling and Reforestation'...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Horse Racing Industry (20 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: There is a wide variety of items available under the suite of seven measures under TAMS II. Grant aid is currently available for horse stocks under the Animal Welfare and Nutrient Storage Scheme and the Young Farmer Capital Investment Scheme. It is proposed that support for equine investments will be made available under the new Capital Investment Scheme as part of the CAP Strategic Plan...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (20 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: From 2023 Ireland's new CAP Strategic Plan (CSP) will come into effect. There are minimum standards that farmers must meet under Conditionality, which is part of the legislative requirements and minimum standards of the new CAP. Conditionality includes the Good Agricultural and Environmental Condition (GAEC) standards. One of them, known as GAEC 2, deals with the protection of carbon...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Schemes (20 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: As the Deputy will be aware, I established the Food Vision Beef and Sheep Group in June of this year.  This Group has been established to advance the actions for the beef and sheep sector identified in the Food Vision 2030 strategy, taking account of the requirement for the sectors to contribute to achieving the targets set for the agriculture and land use sector in the Climate Action...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Sector (20 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: I propose to take Questions Nos. 584 and 586 together. Expenditure by the Forest Service, DAFM - the months of July and August 2022 versus July and August 2021; and to date in 2022. - July August Jan to 13 Sept 2021 €2,268,645 €2,721,602 €61,952,319 2022 €2,309,883 ...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Sector (20 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: There is an overall significant increase on all licensing categories year to date compared with last year. Up to 9th September, we have issued 3,355 licences, just behind the projected average of 3,636, In fact, in the last 12 months from Sept 2021 to the end of August, DAFM have delivered 5,100 licences Afforestation figures are 64% of year to date target.  However July and August have...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Sector (20 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) launched a Reconstitution of Woodland scheme to address frost damage earlier this year.  The scheme was set up due to significant late spring frost events which took place during May 2019, May 2020, and May 2021.  The scheme was established to reconstitute newly planted forests significantly damaged by these frost events...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Sector (20 Sep 2022)

Charlie McConalogue: Since the middle of 2019, ecologists have been required to play a significantly larger role in licensing than previously was the case.  This is as a result of the Departments implementation of the findings of CJEU and High Court cases in relation to how projects are required to be processed. By 2021, the Department had increased significantly the ecology resources.  By the end...