Written Answers. - Departmental Decentralisation.
Mary Wallace
Question:
76
Miss M. Wallace
asked the
Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht
the number of jobs from his Department which were decentralised in each of the past 15 years on a county basis; and the location to which the jobs were transferred on a county basis.
[17458/96]
Since the establishment of my Department in January 1993, no posts have been decentralised. However, I should mention that a number of sections of the former Roinn na Gaeltachta were decentralised to Furbo, County Galway in 1980.
Éamon Ó Cuív
Question:
77
Éamon Ó Cuív
asked the
Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht
the purpose of the workshop on special area conservation site management which is to be held in the Ardalaun House Hotel on 9, 10 and 11 October 1996; the names of the groups and individuals who have been invited to this workshop; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
[17522/96]
The National Parks and Wildlife Service of my Department is responsible in Ireland for the implementation of the EU Habitats Directive (Council Directive 92/43/EEC) on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora.
The workshop is being organised in co-operation with, and with financial assistance from the European Commission.
Article 6 (1) of Council Directive 92/43/EEC (The Habitats Directive) requires member states to establish the necessary conservation measures for special areas of conservation required to meet the ecological requirements of the natural habitat types and the species, set-out in annexes to the Directive, present on the sites, thus ensuring their favourable conservation status.
Site management plans have been identified as a major mechanism towards achieving this objective. Management plan preparation for NATURA 2000 sites has not yet been discussed within the framework of the EU Habitats Committee or its scientific working group.
Different styles of management plans have been developed for nature conservation sites and are starting to be applieod to NATURA 2000 sites, some of which concern projects co-financed through the LIFE programme.
The objective of this seminar are to identify the ingredients of good management plans for NATURA 2000 sites and to provide useful guidelines for their preparation. The workshop will involve case studies and discussions on the different phases of the management plan preparation process.
The participants are member state Governments, the European Commission, participants in EU projects in this field and international non-Government organisations with European perspectives, representing farming, conservation and development interests and our main farming organisations together with An Taisce.
The organisations invited to participate in the workshop are set out in Appendix I, and those organisations requested to provide case study speakers are set out in Appendix II.
In the period of the Irish Presidency it is particularly important that management planning, in respect of the EU NATURA 2000 network, be examined in the European context and that, as far as possible, a joint approach be adopted throughout the Union.
APPENDIX 1.
The EU Commission.
EU Habitats Committee and its Scientific Working Group.
Ministry of the Environment (Bulgaria).
Ministry of the Environment (Slovak Republic).
Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development (Latvia).
Coordination Paysanne Europeene (Belgium).
COPA-COGECA.
Confederation Europeene des Proprietaires Forestiers.
Irish Farmers Association.
Belgische Natuur-en Vogelreservaten ZVW.
Espaces Naturels de France.
Ligue pour le Protection des Olseaux.
National Trust for Scotland.
OADYK-(Greece).
National Forest Board (Sweden).
North Ostrobothnia Regional Environmental Centre (Finland).
Landesnationalparkamt Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (Germany).
March-Thya Floodplains (Austria).
"Vallgrande Wilderness" (Italy).
WWF Oases (Italy).
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.
An Taisce.
Danish National Environmental Research Institute.
Conservatoire de l'Espace Littoral et des Rivages Lacustres (France).
IUCN Commission for National Parks and Protected Areas.
Federation of Nature and National Parks of Europe.
Natuurmounumenten (Netherlands).
Eurosite.
BundesAmt fur Naturschutz.
Macra na Feirme.
Ecosystems (Belgium).
The Heritage Council/An Chomhairle Oidhreachta (Ireland).
Agence Europeenne d'Environment.
Parque Natural de los Aiguamolls de l'Ampurda (Spain).
Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association.
APPENDIX 2.
Organisations invited to provide case study speakers:—
Country Council for Wales.
Reserve Naturelle de France.
Wadden Sea Trilateral Agreement Organisation.
Organismo Autonomo de Parques Nacionales (Spain).
Swedish Environmental Protection Agency.
Greek Biotope Wetland Centre.
Association of British Ports, and the National Parks and Wildlife of my Department.
