Rose Conway Walsh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate the Minister of State on his new post. We welcome the Bill and understand the purpose and need behind these changes in legislation. This is about giving effective and legally sound powers to protect against the pollution of our environment. Of course, it is something that we need to consider in general and not just for our inland waters. We have to consider the effect of powers for all regulatory bodies, not just in respect of the environment but also, for instance, in respect of consumer protection and white collar crime, which has seen its weaknesses exposed recently.

The action we are currently debating only came about after a serious pollutant entered the River Tolka and in excess of 5,000 fish were killed. It was only when this occurred that questions were raised in regard to the powers of Inland Fisheries Ireland. The powers of regulatory bodies need to be sufficient to prevent pollution of our environment. This means that sanctions need to be high enough to deter and must also be high enough to match the damages caused. Alongside this, enforcement needs to be strong enough to ensure we take on those who pollute our environment.

Giving powers is only the first step. Regulating bodies may have powers in legislation but they are not worth the paper they are written on if they are never enforced. Giving proper, effective and strong functions and enforcement powers to regulators shows that we are taking the problems that are there seriously. We cannot deny that the problems exist. Globally, freshwater species alone declined by more than 81% since 1970. Once our environment is polluted, it is inflicted on aquatic environments. Once these species are gone, there is no return and there is no second chance. Such a decline in the numbers of these species is clear evidence that there is something radically wrong. Plans, consultations and discussions are not needed but action in legislation must be taken. Years of neglect by successive Governments have allowed for environmental protection to be seen as a threat rather than a great opportunity.

I acknowledge the ongoing work by angling clubs, farmers and volunteers in keeping many of our rivers, canals and lakes clean. They have picked up the slack on many occasions when Government and local authorities failed. This is often done at their own expense. The question of who is responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of rivers is one that urgently needs to be addressed. Why are so many of our rivers in private ownership and who benefits from them? This needs to be examined. The song lyrics that only our rivers run free belie the reality in terms of who owns our rivers, who benefits from them and who is affected by the negative externalities that come about. I am talking about farmers in particular. They have land behind rivers that is privately owned. They have to stand back and watch while their lands are flooded and ruined. This is their main factor of production but nothing is done about it because it is not possible to establish whether Inland Fisheries Ireland, the local authority or central government is responsible or exactly who is responsible.

An audit needs to be an carried out urgently of the ownership of and responsibility for rivers and how we get the community to maximise the benefits of our rivers and our natural resources. If I was not in this job and had the time - I intend to do it some day - I would do a proper investigation into the handover of our rivers, how they were kept in private ownership, how we as a State now have to pay for the upkeep of many of these rivers and how the benefits are kept within a very select few within this country. I ask that this be tackled in the lifetime of the Government. The Minister of State would certainly get our co-operation in doing it. In the meantime, we need to protect our environment and rivers and to ensure that the community benefits from our natural resources.