Lynn Boylan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome this opportunity to ask the Minister whether the Government will consider banning slug pellets containing metaldehyde from discount stores and garden centres so they are not readily available to households. Britain recently introduced an outright ban on metaldehyde that will come into effect in spring 2022. It did this following research carried out by an expert group on pesticides and health and safety, which found incontrovertible evidence that pellets containing this chemical are harmful to wildlife pets and freshwater supplies, including ornamental ponds. While any outright ban would, of course, require consultation and a lead-in time, surely we could stop the use of these pellets in suburban gardens and public grounds? I volunteer with a hedgehog rescue and every year it takes in hedgehogs foaming at the mouth after ingesting slugs and snails that have consumed the pellets. As the Minister of State will be aware, hedgehogs are a protected species under appendix 3 of the Bern convention and the Wildlife Act 1976 and the amending Act of 2000. However, when it comes to the risks to wildlife from the use of metaldehyde, just hedgehogs are affected. Birds, including birds of prey, have been poisoned, as have foxes and family pets. In Britain it is estimated that at least ten family pets or dogs die a year just from ingesting slug pellets. When it rains, the metaldehyde is washed off the soil and into watercourses, which include ponds, and leads to the poisoning of fish, toads and frogs.

In 2019, we declared a biodiversity emergency and we were the first country to do so. Will the Minister of State consider as a bare minimum that we restrict the use of these pellets in household gardens? Today, anyone can just walk into any of the very well-known discount stores we see in all of our towns and villages and on the high streets and buy these slug pellets for as little as €1.50. I encourage the Minister to roll out a public awareness campaign. I do not think people are deliberately putting down slug pellets to destroy wildlife. They want to protect their plants and they are not aware of the alternatives. Ferric phosphate has been proven to work just as effectively as metaldehyde. Ultimately, we should show people that rather than using ferric phosphate they can make their gardens wildlife friendly by taking very small measures. There are simple measures such as creating a small entrance gap in the fence or gate to encourage hedgehogs to come in. If people encourage their neighbours to do the same, they can ensure hedgehogs have a viable habitat and food to survive in the suburbs.

Any of us who are into gardening, and particularly wildlife watching, will know that if we can encourage hedgehogs and birds into our gardens we definitely do not need slug pellets because they are the best slug and snail deterrents we can have in the garden. Will the Minister of State give a commitment to roll out a public awareness campaign and give serious consideration to at least stopping the sale of these products to people in ordinary households which do not need them for their gardens as there are other alternatives that are safe, and encourage people to make space for nature in their gardens?