Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 26 Apr 1995

Vol. 452 No. 1

Adjournment Debate. - Wildlife Habitats Protection.

Mr. Deasy

When this matter was announced as one of the items for discussion on the Adjournment I noticed a ripple of laughter. It is not a laughing matter. It may not be a bread and butter issue, it may not be as tragic as the drugs problem but it has a relevance to our way of life and it is something to which we do not pay sufficient attention.

Spring is the time when wildlife, animals and birds, breed. Little attention is paid to protection of the breeding habits of these animals and birds. There is little explanation and public awareness of how these creatures can be protected.

Since the Office of Public Works had its responsibilities shared out among different Departments it is difficult to know which Minister is responsible for this item of wildlife. I hope it is the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht who is present, but I am not sure.

I am alluding to the need to draw attention to the fact that every day of the week hedgerows containing birds' nests, where eggs have been laid and, in some cases, young birds have been hatched out, are being cut down. No regard appears to be had for their welfare.

A tragic photograph appeared in The Cork Examiner three weeks ago showing a rookery in Cork which had been cut down by Iarnróid Éireann. It is difficult to imagine a State body cutting down trees upon which there was a substantial rookery. The small birds which had just hatched out were shown lying in their nests. That type of activity should not be condoned, it should not be accepted. When driving to Dublin on Thursday last I noticed a few miles outside Callan notices on the road which read: “Slow, hedge cutting in progress”. I presumed at the time that the notice had been put up by Kilkenny County Council. The hedges had just been cut along quite a stretch of road. On Saturday last, 22 April, I noticed a mountainside on fire. The idea at this time of year is to burn the undergrowth to make way for new growth and provide fresh grazing for sheep. However, no cognisance is taken of the fact that game birds or song birds may be nesting in such environments. It is not unusual to see whole mountainsides alight at this time of the year, and God knows what damage is done and what suffering endured by the creatures living on the mountainsides.

I appreciate that the nesting season varies with the weather, but there are no public pronouncements to tell us when to watch out for it. Breeding habits are complicated. Pigeons and crows will begin nesting in the month of February whereas song birds may not nest until April and game birds until May. If the spring is particularly good, as it has been this year, bird nesting will take place much earlier than normal — it could be a month in advance of last year when we had a particularly bad spring. However, there have been no notices in the paper and no warnings to people not to burn undergrowth or cut hedges. Whose responsibility is it to issue such notices and why has it not been done? Has any action been taken against people who have broken the law? I presume there are laws — that is what I would like to elicit — to safeguard creatures that are breeding. If there are not, there should be. I would like to know if there has ever been a prosecution and if there is a prosecution pending in the case which was so graphically described in The Cork Examiner three weeks ago.

It appears that we are not fulfilling our duty to protect wildlife, particularly the breeding grounds of wildlife. I would like specific answers from the Minister as to why we are neglecting such a valuable asset. Our wildlife is a tremendous tourism asset, a natural asset, something we should cherish, not destroy. There is a callous disregard for wildlife in this country at times. Creatures are particularly vulnerable at this time and should be protected.

Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht (Mr. M. Higgins)

Let me first thank Deputy Deasy for raising this important matter and assure him that, even in the nature of things where we are discussing matters with few Members present, I do attach importance to it. I appreciate the Deputy's raising it. As a result of two orders, one made in December and one in March, matters relating to heritage are now my responsibility and I intend to act accordingly.

In the absence of native woodlands, hedgerows form important features in maintaining wildlife diversity in particular for birds. The commonest nesting birds found in hedgerows such as wrens, bunnocks, robins and willow warblers depend almost entirely on insects during the summer months. In general untrimmed, thorned hedgerows containing species such as blackthorn, whitethorn and holly are favoured by birds as they serve as a protection against predators.

Many of Ireland's important wildlife species are associated with traditional, low intensity, mixed-farming. This, combined with the retention of semi-natural habitat provides a wide range of niches and food resources. Modern farming threatens these micro-habitats. I am hopeful that my programme for the designation of natural heritage areas (NHAs) together with the rural environment scheme (REPS) being administered by my colleague, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry, will go a long way towards protecting these types of habitats. Measures are provided in both of these programmes to maintain existing features that make up farmland habitat "mosaics", such as hedgerows, fields edges, areas of scrub and unmanaged vegetation, drainage ditches etc, which are so valuable to farmland birds and animals.

Under measure 4 of the REPS programme farmers must not remove habitat such as field boundaries, margins, woodlands, wetlands, natural and semi-natural vegetation or damage any of these features on their farms. Under measure 5 farmers will have to carry out specified maintenance or repair work on hedgerows in the interest of wildlife.

We need public education and encouragement to shoulder responsibility in these matters. As to the legal position, measures preventing the burning and destruction of vegetation are covered under sections 39 and 40 of the Wildlife Act, 1976 which I will amend shortly. Provisions are made within these sections for certain exceptions necessary for agriculture, forestry and other developments. If people report to my Department breaches of sections 39 and 40, I will take action to implement the Act.

As to the proposed legal provisions, I have arranged for regulations to be drafted to transpose Council Directive 92/43/EEC on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild flora and fauna into Irish law. This is commonly known as the Habitats Directive.

Under Article 10 of the Habitats Directive members states will be obliged in their and use development policies to encourage the management of features of the landscape which are of major importance for wildlife. An example of this would be hedgerows which act as ecological corridors for the movement of wildlife.

It is widely accepted that the most effective way to conserve wildlife is through habitat protection and management. There are limited resources available and it is necessary to be highly selective when determining priorities and managing resources for wildlife conservation. The main actions being undertaken by me and my colleagues are as follows: research and monitoring of priority habitats and species; proposed designation of natural heritage areas; designation of special protection areas for wild birds under the Birds directive; specific protection measures e.g. the corncrake grant scheme; conservation legislation such as regulations to bring the Habitats Directive into effect and amendments to the Wildlife Act 1976 are being drafted.

I have no notice of the case in Cork to which the Deputy referred. I will have it investigated. I listened with great care to what the Deputy said about putting notices in the papers to advise people of changes is nesting habits brought about by the weather. I will have that examined and see what action is necessary.

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry is promoting the rural environment protection scheme. The European Nature Conservation Year 1995 programme that I am bringing to a wide and diverse audience will contribute to an increased awareness of these issues. I should also mention the ongoing educational activities being undertaken by the staff of the National Parks and Wildlife Service in promoting nature conservation. I use this opportunity to appeal to the public for their assistance and co-operation in improving the regime and in addressing this issue to which the Deputy has drawn the attention of the House.