BirdWatch Ireland is deeply concerned that the newly announced draft Programme for Government presents a very worrying future for Ireland’s wild birds and other biodiversity.
The incoming Irish Government proposes significant increases in infrastructure development, presented in the context of “fast tracking”, “cutting red tape” and de-regulation. While there is significant scope to improve implementation and enforcement of laws and processes, especially through providing adequate staffing and resourcing, BirdWatch Ireland warns against weakening of laws or cutting corners on the protections afforded to biodiversity which would be disastrous.
Despite the fact that Ireland is experiencing a twin climate and biodiversity emergency, as officially declared by Dáil Éireann in May 2019, the actions for biodiversity in the Programme for Government are few and far between. There are startlingly few new ideas which demonstrate any real ambition to halt the loss of biodiversity.
The most important elements are the continued strengthening of the National Parks and Wildlife Service, which is critical and very warmly welcomed by BirdWatch Ireland, alongside the commitment to develop a National Restoration Plan, which is a legal obligation on the State. However, the lack of ring-fenced funding for nature in the Climate and Nature Fund to implement the actions in the National Restoration Plan is worrying. In addition, it is crucially important that the lands of Coillte and Bord na Móna are included for nature restoration, not just State lands, otherwise it is unlikely we will meet the targets in the Nature Restoration Law. The exclusion of these lands from the Programme for Government is both a massive oversight and a wasted opportunity.
There is also no commitment to publish and enact the Marine Protected Area Bill, despite the fact that both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael supported this legislation during the term of the last government. The Programme for Government’s proposal to expand Marine Protected Area designations, another legal obligation, without the MPA legislation makes no sense.
Oonagh Duggan, Head of Advocacy at BirdWatch Ireland said:
“There are significant risks for Ireland’s biodiversity in the 5-year draft Programme for Government. The tone and tenor are ones of ‘fast-tracking’ development, “cutting red tape” and of de-regulation, which could do very significant harm to our wild bird populations and the habitats they need if the laws, processes and licensing protecting nature are targeted, Remember, this is at a time when, shamefully, 63% of Ireland’s wild bird species are officially at risk of extinction. This potential harm will not be compensated by the Programme’s very limited proposals for biodiversity. Ireland’s bird species are at risk of further devastating declines instead of hope to restore populations which is outrageous in the context of the biodiversity emergency declared by the Dáil in 2019.
“The proposal to remove all barriers to planting and felling of trees is particularly worrying and threatens safeguards for our beleaguered natural heritage and ecosystems, such as the avoidance of tree-planting on peat soils and in areas important for breeding waders and on High Nature Value farmland, inevitably leading to catastrophic consequences for these important features of Ireland’s biodiversity. We need to plant a lot more trees but they must be planted in the right places avoiding unintended consequences to climate and biodiversity.
“BirdWatch Ireland calls on government to publish and enact the Marine Protected Area Bill as soon as possible to ensure that we have strong protections and management for Ireland’s marine flora and fauna. Without this legislation, there is no substantive foundation for the protection of marine biodiversity in Ireland”.
