Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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275. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the funding that was allocated to local authorities to conduct hedgerow surveys in the years 2020 to 2024, inclusive, and the amount that was drawn down in each of those years. [28283/25]

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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276. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the total cost of funds provided to complete hedgerow surveys in 2023; the average and median cost per successful applicant to complete a hedgerow survey in in each of the years 2020 to 2025, in tabular form, under the local biodiversity action fund. [28286/25]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 275 and 276 together.

The Local Biodiversity Action Fund (LBAF) operated by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) of my Department provides funding to assist local authorities with the implementation of projects that promote actions in the 4th National Biodiversity Action Plan. Projects supported through this fund cover a range of biodiversity related activities, including hedgerow work, invasive alien species control, dune restoration, wetland surveys and biodiversity awareness,

A summary of funding provided through the LBAF to projects that include hedgerow elements from 2020 to 2025 is presented in the table below. Some of these projects include broader elements, such as biodiversity training events. Variations in the funding drawn down versus awarded may reflect timelines of project delivery, local authority capacity or other administrative factors. See the attached spreadsheet for further details.