Aindrias Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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45. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he is satisfied with the way in which the management plan for SPA and SAC the Gearagh, County Cork, is progressing; the next stage regarding same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27425/20]

Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party)
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My Department's National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) completed and published detailed site-specific conservation objectives for the Gearagh SAC (000108) in September 2016.

A management plan scoping exercise was undertaken by ESB International on behalf of the ESB (who are the main landowner) in 2016/2017. The NPWS took part in the stakeholder group that contributed to the report produced as a result of that exercise.

Under the Habitats Directive, Ireland reports to the EU on the conservation status of all habitats and species of European Community interest, as listed in Annexes to the Directive. Such scientific assessment is carried out on a range of representative sites, both within and outside SACs, over a 6–year cycle. The most recent report was submitted to the EU in 2019 and is available on the NPWS website.

Two of the listed habitats were surveyed in recent times at the Gearagh.

The priority habitat “Alluvial forests with Alder and Ash” is one of the qualifying interests of the Gearagh SAC and a monitoring site for this habitat is located within the SAC. It was most recently surveyed during the 2017-2018 monitoring period. The area, structure and functions, and future prospects of the SAC were all assessed as favourable. No significant negative impacts on the Alluvial forests habitat were recorded. The overall conservation status of the site was assessed as favourable.

This contrasts with the national conservation status of the Alluvial forests habitat in Ireland, which is considered to be bad, and deteriorating.

The Gearagh SAC is also listed for the habitat “Rivers with muddy banks” which has certain characteristic vegetation. The Gearagh was surveyed in 2018 and in addition to the survey, results of a 2018 botanical survey of the Gearagh were made available to the NPWS by the ESB.

The habitat was assessed as favourable in the Gearagh and at national level.

There is one invasive plant species (Tall Flatsedge) that requires monitoring at the Gearagh, but there is no clear evidence that the species is negatively impacting on the habitat.

These positive findings from scientific survey are indicators of a good management regime.