Seanad debates

Wednesday, 9 November 2016

Heritage Bill 2016: Committee Stage

 

10:30 am

Photo of Paudie CoffeyPaudie Coffey (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I commend the Minister on bringing the Bill to the House. We need some balance in this debate. First, I want to declare that I am not a farmer. However, I can bring something to the debate because I live in a rural area, side-by-side with farmers. I see at first-hand what the land means to them in terms of sustaining their livelihoods in future.

From listening to some of the language today one could be forgiven for guessing that an act of terrorism and destruction is being wrought on the countryside. That is not the case.Farmers I know and live beside are responsible people. I can see their practices and the way they manage their lands on a daily basis. They do not want to destroy something that is on their land-holding unless something is needed, from a health and safety perspective or in terms of road access, to sustain their land and agricultural practices.

It is important that, first, we protect our wildlife. The Minister and her Department are ensuring that we do that through regulation. If there is evidence of wanton destruction, there will be the power to bring those people before the courts and to sanction them appropriately. It is also important that we have sustainable land management practices in the agricultural sector. It is important that farming people and country people reside alongside wildlife in a sustainable way. That is something we all want to achieve. Who is best placed to ensure that happens? I do not mean any disrepect to some of the contributors, but I believe the people who reside and manage those lands are best placed to do that. Therefore, we need to bring those people along with us in terms of having best and sustainable practices in the context of this Bill.

Senator McDowell queried why we would have off-road land cutting being allowed for an extra 31 days. We will have a further opportunity to engage with people who know about this but it is my understanding that the month of August is a prime period for farmers to prepare the land for winter grain and for the setting of grass seed. Sometimes when there is bad weather during the months of September and October, as has happened in recent years, that opportunity is lost and, by extension, a period of sustainability in food production is lost. This is where conflict comes into our debate. Some people speak about food security and the need to produce more food for the world, but they then try to restrict that by imposing more regulation and barriers to producing the food that we all need. We need a balance. The Minister's approach strikes that balance in having a regulated system but working with the various interests, including farming interests and people living in rural Ireland. The road outside my house is very narrow and two cars cannot pass each other on it. If the hedgerows are not maintained, there is a serious danger of car accidents. It has to be dealt with in a balanced way. From my experience, local authorities try to manage it locally to the best of their ability. I welcome the Bill in that regard.

I want to draw two other areas to the Minister's attention. As a Minister of State in the former Government, I acted on another issue. This refers to the National Parks and Wildlife Service, the Minister's Department, the Department with responsibility for the environment and the Office of Public Works, OPW, when a river has breached its banks and extensive flooding has occurred. By the time farmers and others living in the countryside are allowed to repair that bank - bearing in mind that they have to apply for licences, permits and must have approvals from the Minister, Deputy Humphrey's Department and possibly two other Departments - their livelihoods, and the lands they manage and its sustainability are put at serious risk. There is a need for a practical consent arrangement between the Minister's Department and the Department with responsibility for the environment and the OPW. In areas where extensive flooding occurs, it puts farming livelihoods at risk and a fast-track approach to repairing and enhancing river banks needs to be put in place.

If we keep going down the road of imposing increased regulation on the people who live in the countryside, we will lose their support. We need the support of those people on the ground if we are to have successful regulation and successful by-laws. If the people on the ground do not buy into this regime, all we will have is further problems down the road. I ask the Minister to take that into account. I understand the Minister, Deputy Coveney, is examining the consent aspect with respect to river banks and I expect this Minister's Department will be involved in that also.

There is a canal in my home town of Portlaw in County Waterford. There are many canals throughout the country and they are very important infrastructure. This legislation will have an impact on how those canals will be managed and sustained into the future. Other colleagues have said that there is a need to extend the consultation period on any new by-laws or changes that occur. Many local authorities, community groups and individuals who use the canals value them and it is important that we as policy makers also value them. It is also important that those people have an adequate opportunity to make themselves aware of any impending by-laws or changes to how canals are being used. The 21 day period provided is far too short. If we consider the cycle of local authority meetings, their plenary meetings are held once a month. If by-laws are being introduced, at the very least local councillors should have the opportunity to debate those at a plenary meeting. Some notice is required for those meetings. I ask the Minister to extend that consultation period substantially, at least to 60 days, to give local authority representatives an opportunity to raise any concerns there may be about new by-laws and that they can be brought up for proper debate before local authorities.

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