Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 9 March 2023
17. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will provide additional information on proposals for rewetting lands that have heretofore been drained; and how this might be rolled out in a county like Clare. [11441/23]
View answerThis question relates to rewetting of bogs and what it might look like in a county such as Clare. There is huge concern because we are hearing it is proposed that up to 90% of drained organic soils would be rewetted, reducing livestock production by 30%, with 875,000 ha brought back into forestry. Overall, this could result in 20% of the State's land being taken out of production, which is a huge concern for rural Ireland. I ask the Minister of State to give some clarity on what is intended.
I remind the Minister of State that we have only 30 seconds remaining on the clock.
The Government's ultimate aim is to help to deliver long-term sustainability in the farming sector.
Regarding the proposed rewetting targets in the proposal on EU nature restoration, sectors such as agriculture and forestry will be central to the successful achievement of those objectives. However, we are still continuing to work on those and the details are not thoroughly clear yet. I acknowledge the concerns that are out there, although there is a bit of scaremongering going on, which is unnecessary. We need to work closely with farmers to come up with the best possible solutions to deliver for nature and for farmers.
