The Deputy highlighted the work of Jo O'Hara, who has stayed on as a member of the project board, which oversees the work of the project woodland. Before questions in the Chamber today, I was on the European Forest Institute conference. There is a Europe-wide forestry strategy being created at the moment. The interaction between what we do here and across Europe is important, including with regard to shared scientific knowledge. As the Deputy said, forests will have a significant future role in how we adapt to clim…

I thank the Deputies. I agree that perhaps in the past there has been too much of an industry-led focus on this. Perhaps this is why we have ended up with the complications we now see with forestry and the acceptance in communities and acceptance among environmentalists also. My forestry policy group is made up of 25 people at the moment. I would categorise there being one third from industry, one third from the environmental NGOs and slightly less than one third from State agencies such as the National Parks and W…

Last week, the wonderful Lough Boora Discovery Park, County Offaly, made the headlines albeit for rather unfortunate reasons. The outcome of a Bord na Móna tender for a bicycle hire business there saw the incumbent well-respected local business owner lose out with a consequent outpouring of community-wide disappointment and anger. In the wake of the decision, there were some ridiculous and totally unfounded accusations of misconduct in relation to the process. While they may have been wide of the mark, the results …

I take on board the comments made by Senator Lombard regarding transparency. It is important in any licensing process. I am usually talking about forestry licensing, so it is good to be here to substitute for the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy McConalogue, to talk about aquaculture licensing. He sends his apologies that he cannot be here to respond to this matter in person. My Department considers applications for aquaculture licences in accordance with the provisions of the Fisheries (Amendm…

As I started my opening speech, I will start this one by agreeing that transparency is important in this process so that people in the communities in which these licences are sought are aware of what is happening, and indeed the applicant him or herself. I can only speak to what has happened in the forestry sector in terms of licences. We have a forestry licence viewer, which is a new, more interactive facility for forestry licences that the public can access and see the information. It may not give every detail at…

Last Friday KBC decided to pull out of the Irish market. This follows the decisions of Ulster Bank to do the same and of Bank of Ireland to close 88 of its branches in our State later this year, causing much distress in many Irish towns. As it is clear that private banking is not serving us well, it is time to reconsider our options. Public banking has been a policy of the Green Party for a long time. In 2019 the Indecon report on public banking stated there was no need for a public bank because the level of compet…

It has been a busy time for Government. Despite the ongoing issues in relation to Covid, the business of Government continues. Last week we saw the landmark Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Bill 2021 passed by Cabinet, and a new pollinator plan was launched before the weekend. Today, the Government will launch its new rural development policy, Our Rural Future. That all amounts to quite a lot of pressure on rural Ireland which has many roles to fulfil, whether it is to deliver for climate actio…

It is great to be here on International Women's Day. The theme of this year's International Women's Day is choosing to challenge. That is something that can resonate with all of us, men or women. We must challenge the status quo , policy, gender balance, inequality, sexism and misogyny. Yet, as a woman, I do not want to focus on those gendered issues, and I do not want to be defined by my ability to challenge them. I do not want that for my daughters, Poppy and Heidi, nor do I want it for my sons, Charlie and Georg…

I thank Senator Carrigy for raising this issue. I apologise that my colleague, the Minister, Deputy Ryan, cannot be here to take the Commencement matter. Senator Carrigy highlighted many of the points in his address. Ireland's peatlands are part of Europe's oldest surviving near natural ecosystems. Due to their conservation value, more than 26,000 ha of raised bogs are protected under the EU habitats directive and national legislation. Some 50 blanket bogs are designated as special areas of conservation. In their n…

I thank the Senator. He is right to raise this issue, whether it relates to Longford, Offaly, Kildare or any area with such a wealth of potential in their peatlands. We have to look at them all. I completely agree with the idea of encouraging schools and communities to visit such sites, not only for their cultural and historical significance but for their future biodiversity and ecosystem value for schools and children. We should do everything we can to encourage that. The knock-on effects in terms of tourism and i…

I thank Senator Murphy for the welcome and for raising this matter. Ash dieback has had a devastating effect on ash plantations throughout the country and I am well aware of its impact on landowners and farmers. As the Senator highlighted, the effects on native trees across the countryside, whether they are in hedges or standing alone, will be apparent very soon. When the disease first presented, almost ten years ago, it was thought that eradication was an option. My Department introduced an Exchequer-funded recons…

I thank the Senator. The scheme is quite new. It has only been running for six or eight months so I suggest that we give it time and there is no reason we cannot look at things further down the line. The other day I saw the television programme on bamboo now being used to make hurleys and the Senator raised important points about the importation of wood, trees or, indeed, other plants into this country. Ireland as an island has a very high status in terms of plant health and, indeed, one of the highest in Europe an…

It is great to be back in the Seanad Chamber for a little while. As The Hollies sang in 1974, "All I need is the air that I breathe". Last week, the Government announced a consultation on solid fuel regulations because we want to reduce deaths from air pollution and ensure better quality of life for those with breathing difficulties. The Government is committed to delivering a clean air strategy. Unfortunately, people have no choice about the air they breathe. Anyone who goes out on a still winter's evening in an a…

I wish everyone here a happy St. Brigid's Day. Brigid was originally a pagan goddess associated with spring and new beginnings. It is great to see our Government colleagues in the Fine Gael Party backing the long-time call from the Green Party to make this day a public holiday. Unfortunately, it has not been very springlike of late. Over the weekend, we saw pictures of the DART line at Seapoint underwater and of the coasts getting battered by waves. Flooding is widespread across the country. On my farm in County Of…

Nine hundred days is a long time to wait for a licence. The advice I imagine the constituent has been given is that supplying a Natura impact statement would expedite the licence application. I accept that there is a cost associated with that. I do not know the constituent's details. If the area is small, the cost of supplying a statement could be prohibitive. If it is a large area, however, the constituent might be able to it. In light of the advice the Deputy outlined, I imagine the person's licence application i…

According to the figures I have been provided, there will be a mix. We have recruited full-time staff. There are 16 full-time equivalents and we have sanction for eight additional permanent ecologists. Given the way we are going now, ecologists comprise a discipline that we will need more of across the board, not just in forestry. There is not a steady supply of them. In that regard, I would be interested in seeing more being done in education, training and development.

I thank the Senator for raising this issue and providing the opportunity to update the House on this important project. I extend apologies from the Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications, Deputy Eamon Ryan, who cannot be here in person as he is in the other Chamber. The programme for Government commits to ensuring that the energy efficiency potential of smart meters starts to be deployed in 2021 and that all mechanical electrical meters are replaced by 2024. The smart meter upgrade is a meter replacem…

I acknowledge that the cost-benefit of this is crucial. If we want to incentivise people to be more cognisant of the electricity they are using and their energy consumption, it has to be simple for them to do that. The Senator asked a number of questions and I have noted them. I am sure somebody can look over the Official Report as well. I will bring them to the Minister, Deputy Ryan, and ask him to refer back to the Senator in a timely manner.

The Minister, Deputy McConalogue, apologises for not being here in person to take this question. The safety and welfare of pet animals was one of the concerns behind the introduction by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine of regulations on the sale and supply of pet animals last year, and which came into effect in February. These regulations were welcomed by the ISPCA and other welfare organisations, and put into law certain requirements for sellers and suppliers of pet animals, including minimum age…

Ultimately, responsibility lies not only with the people selling the pets to provide the information required, as was indicated by the Senator, but also on the publishers of the advertisements. They are required to ensure that people display the information. Unfortunately, they do not have access to the source of the information, so it is difficult for them to verify that. The enforcement of the regulations is particularly difficult with regard to the issues highlighted by the Senator in terms of false microchip nu…