Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

376. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the steps he is taking to address the Status of EU Protected Habitats and Species in Ireland Report’s finding that the overall status of estuaries habitats are inadequate. [42789/21]

Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

377. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the steps he is taking to address the Status of EU Protected Habitats and Species in Ireland Report’s finding that the overall status of lagoons are bad. [42790/21]

Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

380. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the steps he is taking to address the Status of EU Protected Habitats and Species in Ireland report finding that the overall status of tidal mudflats and sandflats are inadequate. [42852/21]

Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 376, 377 and 380 together.

The EU Protected Habitats and Species Report is a key report produced by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) of my Department as part of its work to protect Ireland’s biodiversity and natural heritage. The report draws on a very substantial body of scientific work led by NPWS in collaboration with external experts, working together over a period of six years. The assessments in the report help to inform important decisions around my Department’s work programme.

There are a number of priority actions that are being taken in my Department and across Government to improve the conservation status of estuaries, lagoons and tidal mudflats and sandflats, and other habitats and species that are protected by the European Union’s Birds and Habitats Directives.

The updated Prioritised Action Framework for the Implementation Birds and Habitats Directives was approved by Government in March this year and has been submitted to the European Commission in line with Article 8 of the Habitats Directive.

With regard to coastal lagoons, water quality and hydrological issues are among the main pressures on these habitats. The main conservation measures required relate to the improvement of water quality in lagoon catchments and the restoration of hydrological processes, including once-off infrastructural measures to manage water regimes as well as ongoing measures to reduce nutrient inputs. While measures to improve water quality will continue to be required and delivered through the river basin planning process, specific targeted programmes will also be required, particularly for the large sedimentary lagoons of the south-east coast.

My Department is co-funding a project with the Environmental Protection Agency called CLEAR (Coastal Lagoons: Ecology and Restoration). This project will answer critical scientific questions about the ecological dynamics of our coastal lagoons, as well as a detailed plan for the restoration of Lady’s Island Lake in Wexford, one of Ireland’s largest, and proposed restoration methods that will be applicable to other sites. This project represents a critical step in mapping out what specific actions will be required to restore our coastal lagoons. It is due to report in 2022.

With regard to estuaries and tidal mudflats and sandflats, my Department’s recent reports have also concluded that eutrophication and damage to keystone marine communities are the key issues driving their conservation status.

My Department is developing Ireland’s next River Basin Management Plan (RBMP) 2022-2027, a key tool for the implementation of the EU’s Water Framework Directive and for the improvement of water quality in Ireland. The water quality requirements of the habitats protected by the Habitats Directive, such as coastal lagoons, estuaries, and tidal mudflats and sandflats, are being considered in the prioritisation of areas and actions in the new RBMP. The next Nitrates Action Programme is also currently out for public consultation by my Department; this will be the primary policy instrument to reduce nutrient losses from agricultural land to freshwater and subsequent loads to the marine environment.