Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 19 December 2018
431. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the discussions he has had with the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht regarding permitting afforestation in hen harrier areas. [53622/18]
View answerI am informed that the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht is currently finalising the draft Threat Response Plan for public consultation. This follows consultation with the stakeholder representative Consultative Committee, earlier this year, which generated considerable feedback regarding, among other issues, proposals for limited afforestation within the SPAs.
The timeline for the release of the draft Plan is a matter for the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. However, it should be noted that any afforestation within a Natura site must satisfy Article 6(3) of the Habitats Directive, and must also be agreed to by National Parks & Wildlife Service. Until the Threat Response Plan is completed, my Department will not be in a position to approve afforestation projects within the SPAs.
The European Communities (Birds and Natural Habitats) Regulations 2011, stipulates that any Minister considering a plan or project in a Special Protection Area (SPA) shall give consent for such a plan or project only after having determined that the plan or project shall not adversely affect the integrity of a European site. A series of judgements issued by the Court of Justice of the EU have stressed that there must be no doubt about possible adverse impacts in such decisions. In addition, under the European Union guidelines for State aid in the agricultural and forestry sectors and in rural areas, within Natura sites (i.e. SPAs and Special Areas of Conservation, or SACs), only afforestation consistent with the management objectives of the sites concerned, and agreed with the Member State’s authority in charge of implementing Natura 2000 (in Ireland’s case, the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht), shall be allowed.
I fully recognise the importance of the preservation and conservation of the Hen Harrier and other protected bird species. My Department gives priority access to GLAS applicants with land in SPAs and supports them in adopting farming systems suitable to the protected species. Over 2,650 farmers currently have Hen Harrier actions under GLAS, covering in excess of 42,200 hectares of habitat. My Department is also funding a Hen Harrier Programme under the European Innovation Partnerships (EIP) measure. This particular programme, which has a budget of some €25 million, focuses specifically on farmers managing habitat in the six Hen Harrier SPAs.
