Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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Question 32: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the stage at which farmers are informed by his Department that their land is to be designated; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37466/08]

John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)
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Designations of land for the purposes of nature protection fall broadly into two categories. Natura 2000 sites, which are either Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) or Special Protection Areas (SPAs), are designated and protected under the EU Habitats and Birds Directives. Natural Heritage Areas (NHAs) are designated under the Wildlife Acts. Proposed sites requiring designation are identified, evaluated and spatially defined by my Department before being recommended to me for designation.

If I decide to nominate a site for designation, my Department directly notifies all landowners who are identifiable by my Department within the boundaries of nominated site. Individual landowners are notified in writing and are sent an information pack which includes a map of the proposed site boundaries, details of the implications of the designation and information on how to lodge an objection to such a proposal. The names and addresses of affected landowners are sourced from the Land Parcel Identification System, the Property Registration Authority and through information held by my Department. A commercially available database is used to identify landowners in urban and peri-urban locations.

Additional measures are taken where there is a possibility that individual landowners might not be reached through direct notification. In such cases, my Department ensures that proposed designations are advertised in local newspapers and on local radio. Relevant maps are also displayed for public viewing in the local offices of the National Parks and Wildlife Service, the local offices of the Department of Social and Family Affairs, local Teagasc offices, local Garda stations and public libraries.