Deer management units set up in 15 hotspots
Agriculture minister Martin Heydon told the Dáil about the new deer management units that have been set up. File picture: iStock
Deer management units have been set up at locations countrywide, agriculture minister Martin Heydon told the Dáil.
The aim is to give the best geographic coverage to reduce the density of deer in 15 hotspot locations.
It follows the setting up in 2022 of the Irish Deer Management Strategy Group under the independent chairmanship of Cork farmer Teddy Cashman, a subsequent public consultation, and report.
Politicians and others have been calling for measures to address the dangers to human life caused by roaming deer along public roads and on rail lines.
Kerry TD Michael Cahill recently sought a detailed report in the Dáil on the action being taken to tackle the increasing number of accidents involving deer.
He also urged the minister to expedite the introduction of preventive measures before a fatality occurs or a member of the public is seriously injured.
In a written reply, Mr Heydon said his department, along with that of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, established the Deer Management Strategy group to develop a strategy for the sustainable management of deer in Ireland.
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The group comprised representatives from his Department, the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) and Coillte.
A report was published titled “Developing a Sustainable Deer Management Strategy for Ireland” in 2023.
It listed 16 Actions, 8 of which are recommended in the short term and 8 of which are recommended in the medium term.
These recommended actions address a wide range of issues from hunter training and forest design to land use management and the venison market.
Mr Heydon said the report concluded that a formal structure was required to manage deer in Ireland.
This involved the appointment of a Programme Manager to implement the recommendations of the report and the establishment of local deer management units in known hotspot areas.
He said his department is committed to progressing the implementation of the actions identified by the report.
“The locations of the deer management units (DMUs) have been finalised, and these units are now established,” he said.
Mr Heydon added that any queries in relation to safety on public roads should be directed to the Department of Transport who has responsibility for the Road Safety Authority.
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Michael Rowland, director of research with the Road Safety Authority, told the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Agriculture in May that it had analysed deer-related collision data for 2019 to 2025.
Over this seven-year period, 41 casualty collisions, where there was a serious or minor road user injury, were either recorded as having involved deer, or the road user was avoiding deer at the time.
None of these were fatal collisions. They represented less than 1% of the casualty collisions that occurred during this period.
It also analysed material damage collisions that did not result in any road user injuries, that occurred during the same period.
Over 1,382 collisions were recorded as having involved deer, or the road user was avoiding deer at the time.
Just under half of these collisions occurred across Kerry, Cork, Wicklow, Tipperary, and Donegal.
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