Irish State should declare it is keen to see new nature reserves established — and is open to applications

More nature reserves are needed here — on public land as well as privately-owned property, says ecologist Pádraic Fogarty

NPWS: Lough Hyne Nature Reserve, 65 ha  established in 1981 and State-owned. "This is a sea lough with a very wide range of important habitats within the lough and its seaward approaches, a range seldom found in more extensive areas elsewhere. These varied habitats support an exceptionally wide range of animal and plant species."

Nature reserves are the cornerstone of nature conservation and although not a panacea for the biodiversity crisis they retain their critical value as refuges for diminishing populations of plants and animals.

The importance of ‘protected areas’ (a catch-all term that encompasses the many types of designations on land and sea that are intended to protect biodiversity) was emphasised at the COP15 meeting in Montreal, Canada in 2022. It was here that governments agreed on an ambitious target to protect at least 30% of land and sea by 2030, known in shorthand as 30x30.