Government to step up protected lands for wildlife
The Government are still under severe pressure to protect more habitats and wildlife species, having received three further final written warnings from the European Commission.
One of the warnings concerned the continuing failure of Ireland to meet its obligations under the Wild Birds Directive, to protect the habitats of rare and endangered wild bird species such as the corncrake, the chough and the hen harrier.
Earlier this year proposals to restrict land use in much of Munster's uplands in order to preserve the hen harrier enraged farmers, foresters and wind energy investors.
Now, hundreds of landowners have got notices from the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government proposing to designate part of their lands as Special Areas of Conservation (SACs). Lorcan McCabe, Chairman of ICMSA's Farm Services and Environment Committee last week called for any further designations of land to be suspended until negotiations between the farm organisations and the Department over designations are concluded.
ICMSA has advised farmers to ignore the latest notices, and IFA has issued the same advice locally, and suggested that farmers order environment officials off their land.
However, with the second smallest area of special protection areas (SPAs) in the EU, and with national legislation and SPA conservation practice in Ireland unsatisfactory, according to conservationists, the EU is unlikely to let up its pressure on the Government.
A second EU written warning concerns implementation of the Habitats Directive; the European Commission considers that Ireland is not doing enough to safeguard the breeding and resting places of protected cetaceans and bats. The third warning concerns legislation on recreational activities that might damage sites protected under the Habitats Directive (such as the use of quad bikes on fragile peatlands).
