Vol. 436 No. 4
158 Ms F. Fitzgerald asked the Minister for the Environment if, in view of the National Development Plan, 1994-1999, he will give details of the steps, if any, which he took to consult and involve the relevant authorities in the different stages of programming in relation to the environmental impact of the plan on their regions; the way in which this was done; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
As indicated in Chapter 13 of the National Development Plan, the seven Sub-Regional Review Committees (representative of local environmental authorities and Government Departments as well as the social partners) prepared detailed recommendations on the development strategy and priority measures for their areas. All of these submissions emphasised the need to protect, and invest in, the natural environment as a vital asset for regional development in agriculture, natural resource based industry and tourism.
These submissions provided a valuable input to the plan and are being taken into account in preparing the detailed Operational Programmes through which the plan will be implemented.
The environmentally related requirements of the Structural Funds Framework Regulations have been fully addressed in the plan.
