Paul Murphy decries illegal felling of Cork's ancient hedgerows
Paul Murphy criticised the illegal felling of over 30 acres of native broadleaf trees and mature hedgerows in Cork, revealed by an FOI of the National Parks and Wildlife Service. He warned that nearly two kilometres of ancient, long-established hedgerows with high biodiversity value were removed and questioned whether nature is being sacrificed for profit.
There has been shockingly little coverage of the scandal of the illegal felling of over 30 acres of native broadleaf trees and mature hedgerows in Cork, dating back to at least the 1800s. An FOI of the National Parks and Wildlife Service discovered that nearly two kilometres of ancient, long-established hedgerows with high biodiversity value were removed, and machinery was moved onto the site through Quilche forestry land despite permission to access the site being refused.
Paul Murphy asked how such large-scale removal could be allowed to happen and whether the standard in Cork is that nature and biodiversity are to be sacrificed for profits. He noted the site's proximity to the Blackwater River and referenced a previous enormous fish kill he had raised with the Taoiseach when questioning Government oversight and enforcement.
The Taoiseach replied that it was unfair to say that sacrificing biodiversity is the Government's standard and said the budget for the National Parks and Wildlife Service has been doubled. He said the Service now has a stronger organisational structure within the Department of Housing and Heritage, recalled involvement by the then minister with responsibility at the NWPS and the current minister, and said he needed to obtain a comprehensive report on what transpired, calling the actions unacceptable.
The Taoiseach said the Government is consistently looking at ways to enhance biodiversity, create greater opportunities for rewilding, and add to the national park network, noting recent successes and an intention to do more in the coming years. A comprehensive report was promised to establish the facts and inform any further action to ensure such removal cannot happen again.
Allegations and FOI findings
There has been shockingly little coverage of the scandal of the illegal felling of over 30 acres of native broadleaf trees and mature hedgerows in Cork, dating back to at least the 1800s. An FOI of the National Parks and Wildlife Service discovered that nearly two kilometres of ancient, long-established hedgerows with high biodiversity value were removed, and machinery was moved onto the site through Quilche forestry land despite permission to access the site being refused.
Concerns raised in the Dáil
Paul Murphy asked how such large-scale removal could be allowed to happen and whether the standard in Cork is that nature and biodiversity are to be sacrificed for profits. He noted the site's proximity to the Blackwater River and referenced a previous enormous fish kill he had raised with the Taoiseach when questioning Government oversight and enforcement.
Government response and enforcement measures
The Taoiseach replied that it was unfair to say that sacrificing biodiversity is the Government's standard and said the budget for the National Parks and Wildlife Service has been doubled. He said the Service now has a stronger organisational structure within the Department of Housing and Heritage, recalled involvement by the then minister with responsibility at the NWPS and the current minister, and said he needed to obtain a comprehensive report on what transpired, calling the actions unacceptable.
Commitments on biodiversity and next steps
The Taoiseach said the Government is consistently looking at ways to enhance biodiversity, create greater opportunities for rewilding, and add to the national park network, noting recent successes and an intention to do more in the coming years. A comprehensive report was promised to establish the facts and inform any further action to ensure such removal cannot happen again.
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Transcript
There has been shockingly little coverage of the scandal of the illegal felling of over 30 acres of native broadleaf trees and mature hedgerows in Cork, dating back to at least the 1800s, if not earlier. It was revealed by the journal after an FOI of the National Parks and Wildlife Service last week discovered that nearly two kilometres of ancient, long-established hedgerows that had high biodiversity value for local wildlife were removed. Despite being refused permission to access the site via Quilche forestry lands, they continued to move their machinery onto the site for this illegal work through Quilche land. Is it going to be the standard that nature and biodiversity is to be sacrificed for profits in Cork? It is not far away from the Blackwater River, where there was the enormous fish kill which I raised previously with the Taoiseach. How is this allowed to happen in the first place, and how is the Government going to act to ensure that it cannot happen again? Thank you, Mayor. I have to get a report on that. It is not the standard. It is unfair to say that is the standard by which we are going to deal with biodiversity and our natural habitats. We have doubled the budget, and I was involved myself in the last five years with the then Minister with responsibility at the NWPS, Malcolm Noonan, and now with Minister Christopher Sullivan. We have doubled the budget for the NWPS. We have given it significant momentum. It has a strong organisational structure within the Department of Housing and Heritage, and we are adding to our national parks, but what happened here is wrong, fundamentally. I have to, I have read about it, but I need to get a comprehensive report on what transpired here. Unacceptable in my view. And we are consistently looking at ways that we can enhance our biodiversity, create greater opportunities for rewilding, and add to our national park network. Thank you. We did that successfully in the last couple of years. Deputy Paddard Toby. Deputy Paddard Toby. We want to do more in this couple of years.