Denis Naughten (Longford-Roscommon, Fine Gael)
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Question 262: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the number of appeals to land designations submitted since November 2006 under various EU habitat and environmental directives; the number of such appeals on hand under each designation; the time table and procedure involved in the appeal process for each designation; the average time for processing an appeal under each designation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12260/07]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Under the Habitats Regulations 1997, a landowner may seek review of a designation of land as a proposed Special Area of Conservation (pSAC) or as a proposed Special Protection Areas (pSPAs) by making an objection in writing, and based on scientific grounds, to my Department along with a clear map of the land in question. The Regulations provide that such objections must be made within a three-month period of the site being notified.

My Department has received some 679 objections to designation of land for nature conservation since 1 November 2006. Some 596 of these relate to candidate Special Areas of Conservation (cSACs) designated under the Habitats Directive; 72 relate to designated under the Birds Directive and 11 to Natural Heritage Areas designated under the Wildlife Act.

Following receipt, each objection is given an initial review by my Department. The internal review generally takes six to eight weeks following receipt of a decision. Any person who is not satisfied with the result of that initial consideration may appeal within 3 weeks on scientific grounds to the Designated Areas Appeals Advisory Board.

Each appellant to the Appeals Advisory Board has six weeks from the time of their appeal to produce a scientific report to ground the appeal; my Department must prepare a report in response. The case is then scheduled for prompt consideration by the Board.

My Department's priority is to ensure that, in line with the Partnership Agreement, Towards 2016, the Appeals Board operates within a clear timeframe. I am also anxious to ensure that the current appeals are dealt with as expeditiously as possible as part of national efforts to conclude the designation process under the Habitats Directive. To that end, additional resources have been provided to the Appeals Advisory Board to ensure that its decisions are given promptly.