Vol. 481 No. 4
219 Mr. E. Kenny asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands the relationship between her Department and the Environmental Protection Agency in respect of national heritage areas and special areas of conservation; if she has availed of the services of the Environmental Protection Agency to date in this regard; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16446/97]
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established under the Environmental Protection Act, 1992, and is an independent public body under the aegis of the Department of the Environment and Local Government. It is organisationally distinct and operates independently of my Department.
My Department's National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) is responsible for the conservation of proposed Natural Heritage Areas and Special Areas of Conservation and, in this regard, its brief is very specific, that is, to safeguard the conservation status of species and habitats which are considered to be of national or international significance.
The Environmental Protection Agency has, of course, a much wider environmental role, with more emphasis on what can loosely be termed general environmental "cleanliness".
Although the agendas of NPWS and the Environmental Protection Agency are entirely compatible with each other, the emphasis differ somewhat. NPWS is very happy, however, to explore any potential that may exist for mutually beneficial co-operation or collaboration.
