Joe Carey (Clare, Fine Gael)
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38. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the status of the hen harrier threat response plan; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11355/17]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The hen harrier is a protected bird, listed in Annex I of the EU Birds Directive and as such, Member States are obligated to protect and conserve the species. The National Parks and Wildlife Service of my Department has been involved in the monitoring of hen harrier at the national scale for nearly twenty years. National breeding surveys have been undertaken on a five yearly basis and the recent national survey, undertaken in 2015, estimated the population in Ireland to be between 108 and 157 breeding pairs. It is therefore a very scarce species. Over the last 15 years or so it has been estimated that the national population of hen harriers has declined by more than 30%. Research and monitoring initiatives undertaken by my Department and other bodies have identified likely pressures acting on the population that include continued afforestation; wind farm development; and agricultural intensification as well as possible increases in predation that are likely to be linked to the recently recorded declines. These led to the decision to develop a Hen Harrier Threat Response Plan. The primary focus in developing this plan is to set out a comprehensive framework of measures to ensure the recovery of the hen harrier population, and its continued conservation, in Ireland.

Development of the Hen Harrier Threat Response Plan is being led by my Department in cooperation with other Departments whose remits impact on the hen harrier and its supporting ecology.  In July 2014 my Department established an inter-Departmental Steering Group, incorporating representatives from the key Departments to assist in the development of the Plan. In addition, a Stakeholder Consultative Committee has also been established to assist in drafting the Plan. The Committee is chaired by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) and includes representatives from the forestry, agriculture and wind farm sectors. As a key stakeholder, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine is represented on both the Steering Group and the Stakeholder Consultative Committee.

The Inter-Departmental Steering Group has met on eight occasions. The main issues regarding land uses, wind farming, forestry and agriculture have been investigated and discussed in detail by the Steering Group and the Stakeholder Consultative Committee. The report of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine on this matter has also been taken into account.

Officials from my Department are in active discussions with the key Departments at this time in order to finalise the draft Plan shortly. It will be shared for discussion with the Stakeholder Consultative Committee and will then undergo a public consultation and screening for Strategic Environmental Assessment and Appropriate Assessment. 

Substantial work has been, and is being, carried out by my Department, and the other stakeholders, in setting the key issues around managing the recovery and conservation of the hen harrier population in Ireland, with full recognition of the concerns of landowners and the other key groups involved in the development of this Plan.