Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 30 April 2025
91. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his role and responsibility in relation to Lady's Island Lake, County Wexford; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21371/25]
View answer92. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he is aware of the Environmental Protection Agency's 2025 Coastal Lagoons Report outlining the significant degradation of Lady's Island Lake, County Wexford, which is a special protection area; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21372/25]
View answer93. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will convene a stakeholder group including, but not limited to, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Wexford County Council, local landowners and the Environmental Protection Agency to develop a remediation plan for Lady's Island Lake, County Wexford; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21373/25]
View answer94. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the actions his Department intends to take to address the widely reported decline of Lady's Island Lake, County Wexford; the way in which he intends to bring it back, in compliance with the EU Habitats Directive and the Water Framework Directive; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21395/25]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 91 to 94, inclusive, together.
The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) of my Department has responsibility for the designation of the Lady's Island Lake Special Protection Area under Statutory Instrument 69 of 2010 and the Lady's Island Lake Special Area of Conservation under Statutory Instrument 292 of 2018. The NPWS carries out certain nature conservation projects including the wardening of seabird breeding islands in Lady's Island Lake and, in conjunction with the National Botanic Gardens, a project to protect the population of Cottonweed, which is the last population of this species in the UK or Ireland.
Water levels in Lady’s Island are currently managed by cutting a pathway through a sandpit that separates the lagoon from the sea. This also serves a function in releasing a build-up of nutrients in the lagoon water body, a well-known pollution concern. The ‘cutting’, which is managed by the NPWS, is considered to be an unsustainable long-term solution, however, to water management of the lagoon. To address this, I understand that Wexford County Council propose to replace incremental cutting with a permanent engineered solution between Lady's Island Lake and the sea. The proposed engineering works would manage water levels effectively. However, the works, as currently designed, may lower salinity levels due to a reduced saline intrusion input. This could impact on lagoon ecology, with implications for EU Habitats Directive reporting, as also identified in the EPA report. In terms of the ecology of the lagoon, and the ongoing management of water levels, I can confirm that the NPWS is currently carrying out a monitoring programme at Lady’s Island to establish baseline conditions across the lagoon. This will provide the information needed to assess the current condition of the lagoon, its influence and support on lagoon ecology, and the threshold levels that must be aimed for in engineering management to control lagoon water levels.
Under the EC (Birds and Natural Habitats) Regulations 2011, responsibility for general protection of these designated areas lies with all public authorities with relevant functions, such as Wexford Co Co and LAWPRO with water quality protection functions. LAWPRO (The Local Authorities Water Programme) works on behalf of Ireland’s 31 local authorities to protect and restore good water quality in our rivers, lakes, estuaries, ground and coastal water through catchment science and local community engagement. LAWPRO is the lead agency on progressing actions to restore water quality in this specific catchment area.
