Michael Ring
Ceist:228 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage Gaeltacht and the Islands the position with the SAC and SPA designations; if they have been finalised; and if not, when they will be completed. [20338/01]
Written Answers. - Designated Areas.
The Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC) requires member states to propose relevant natural areas for designation as special areas of conservation for the conservation of listed habitats and species and to protect their favourable conservation status. The directive was transposed into Irish law in February 1997 by means of the European Communities (Natural Habitats) Regulations, 1997. A total of 362 sites, covering almost 1,000,000 hectares of land and water, have been formally transmitted to the Commission to date as candidate special areas of conservation. These proposals will be assessed at the Atlantic region bio-geographical seminar which is scheduled to take place in September 2001. As matters stand, the sites are fully protected under national legislation.
Having regard to the number and extent of SACs that I have proposed, I anticipate that Ireland's proposals will be found sufficient for most habitats and species, with the exception of salmon, at the second Atlantic region bio-geographical seminar in September of this year. I have decided in principle to propose new or extended SACs for the protection of salmon but these cannot be formally proposed until surveys to define their boundaries have been completed.
The EU Birds Directive (79/409/EEC) requires member states to protect birds and to establish special protection areas for areas hosting internationally important populations of bird species and for bird habitats. To date 110 SPAs have been established covering 220,000 hectares of land. I propose to extend some existing SPAs and designate up to 30 new SPAs when the necessary survey work is completed and I expect to have this process completed in 2002.
Michael Ring
Ceist:229 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage Gaeltacht and the Islands the total estimate of net agricultural land in each county proposed as SAC/SPA. [20339/01]
I am unable to provide the data in the form requested by the Deputy. Dúchas, the heritage service of my Department, does not currently have access to data relating to agricultural coverage. I point out that candidate special areas of conservation are inclusive of inland water bodies and marine areas and, therefore, are not directly comparable with land area for each county.
I have, however, provided the total area in hectares of candidate special areas of conservation as well as a percentage breakdown of the total CSAC area on a county basis in the following table. At the time of advertisement of proposed SAC designations, copies of the maps are forwarded to the landowners known to Dúchas. In addition, maps are forwarded to the relevant planning authority, the local Teagasc office, the local farm development service, as well as the EPA, An Bord Pleanála and interested Departments so they may be made available for public inspection. In excess of 220,000 hectares have been designated as special protection areas. I will make arrangements to have a breakdown on a county basis forwarded to the Deputy shortly.
|
County |
CSAC(Hectares) |
% of Total CSAC area |
|
Clare |
79,797 |
8.22% |
|
Cork |
50,255 |
5.18% |
|
Cavan |
6,039 |
0.62% |
|
Carlow |
3,939 |
0.41% |
|
Donegal |
111,545 |
11.49% |
|
Dublin |
7,805 |
0.8% |
|
Galway |
157,957 |
16.2% |
|
Kildare |
540 |
0.06% |
|
Kerry |
198,032 |
20.4% |
|
Kilkenny |
4,155 |
0.43% |
|
Laois |
5,026 |
0.52% |
|
Leitrim |
13,178 |
1.36% |
|
Longford |
5,578 |
0.57% |
|
Louth |
8,810 |
0.91% |
|
Limerick |
10,848 |
1.12% |
|
Mayo |
140,990 |
14.52% |
|
Meath |
433 |
0.04% |
|
Monaghan |
58 |
0.01% |
|
Offaly |
6,123 |
0.63% |
|
Roscommon |
10,910 |
1.12% |
|
Sligo |
30,180 |
3.11% |
|
Tipperary |
11,759 |
1.21% |
|
Waterford |
11,195 |
1.15% |
|
Wicklow |
33,538 |
3.46% |
|
Westmeath |
8,071 |
0.83% |
|
Wexford |
53,933 |
5.56% |
Total970,694100%