The Enhanced Decommissioning Rehabilitation and Restoration Scheme (EDRRS) approved by the Government in November 2020 encompasses work on approximately 33,000 hectares of Bord na Móna peatlands previously harvested for peat extraction for electricity generation. €108 million National Recovery and Resilience funding for the project has been approved for this large-scale peatlands project to rehabilitate these Bord na Móna peatlands by the EU on condition of meeting agreed milestones and targets.
The Scheme is administered by the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications and it is regulated by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) of this Department. Bord Na Móna are the Operators of the Scheme and they are under the aegis of the Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications.
In April 2021, in its role as scheme Regulator, the NPWS reviewed the Derrycashel Bog EDRRS rehabilitation plan as submitted by Bord na Móna, to ensure that it met the scheme‘s objectives. The NPWS approved the Derrycashel Bog rehabilitation plan once it was satisfied that the plan met the schemes objectives to rehabilitate the peatlands in accordance with peat rehabilitation best practice. Submitted by Bord na Móna as part of the Derrycashel Bog rehabilitation plan, the NPWS also reviewed the projected cost plan for the rehabilitation works at Derrycashel Bog to ensure that the projected costs were allowable costs which may be recouped under the scheme.
The EDRRS rehabilitation works are still ongoing on Derrychashel Bog. In its role as scheme Regulator, the NPWS has undertaken a field visit to monitor these works and to ensure that the ongoing works are in line with the approved bog rehabilitation plan. Bord na Móna also provides regular weekly updates to NPWS as regards the progress of all ongoing work on the EDRRS bogs. As scheme regulator, the NPWS has also reviewed all EDRRS costs claimed by Bord na Móna to date to ensure that all such costs are allowable under the scheme and that costs across all the bogs where work has begun are in line with projected costs.
As EDRRS Regulator, the NPWS must ensure that there is no replication between rehabilitation work carried out and paid for under the scheme and any remediation obligations that Bord na Móna may have under the terms of its Integrated Pollution Control licenses granted by the EPA. The NPWS undertakes this check when reviewing the costs claimed by Bord na Móna under the scheme.
To date, Bord na Móna has not yet submitted EDRRS rehabilitation plans to the NPWS for review for Derryadd Bog or Derryarogue Bog.
