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CONSERVATION GROUPS CLAIM WILFUL DAMAGE TO WILDLIFE SITES CONTINUES

For release 25th May 2000 - BUSWELLS HOTEL

Five leading conservation NGOs called today for the immediate enforcement of the
European Habitats Directive. The five environmental groups said that sites "protected" under the Directive as Special Areas of Conservation [SAC] continue to be damaged and destroyed.

Two years ago, the five conservation groups released a list of 23 threatened wildlife sites. Today, as a result of their on-going monitoring, they highlighted the new additions to this list and the
continuing damage to the original 23 sites.

While in some cases sites are being destroyed as a by-product of other developments, in other cases it appears to be intended to destroy their scientific value in order to avoid SAC wildlife designation.

SACs are legally protected under the EU Habitats Directive from the time the landowner is notified of the proposed designation. Landowners are informed that certain activities cannot be undertaken without the consent of the Minister. However, many are unwittingly or blatantly disregarding this protection.

The groups highlighted SACs which have been destroyed or are under immediate threat of destruction.

The sites are:
KILDARE: Pollardstown Fen - Kildare By-pass, road scheme "in-cut" proposal
WICKLOW: Brittas Bay - Destruction of dunes to avoid designation
LIMERICK: Barrigone- quarry development
KILDARE - Moud's Bog - extension of industrial moss peat extraction
OFFALY - Clara Bog - severly damaged by burning of the site
WEXFORD ­ Wexford Harbour SPA, infill of 5 ha of intertidal mudflats at Ferrybank, and incomplete classification of the harbour.

The groups called on the Minister to take whatever steps were necessary to ensure Ireland's compliance with community law in protecting these important sites.

NGO Comments:

Peter Foss, Irish Peatland Conservation Council - "The Habitats Directive provides the means to protect the natural heritage we boast of so proudly. We need to do more rather than
the minimum to protect wildlife".

Shirley Clerkin, Irish Wildlife Trust - "If SAC protection is to really
meaningful, planning authorities must consider the environmental impacts of
proposed developments within SACs".

Tony Lowes, An Taisce - "If we allow
any but scientific arguments to influence our decision making, we open the
doors to abuse and corruption."

Paul Galvin, Birdwatch Ireland ­ "It is time we started taking our responsibilities seriously. Our obligations under the Birds and Habitats Directives must be implemented and those sites important for nature conservation must be protected now."

BRIEFING NOTE SACS IN IRELAND

The aim of the European Habitats Directive is to create a network of protected wildlife sites in Europe. Each member state must designate their most important natural areas as Special Areas of Conservation. The Directive specifies the scientific criteria on the basis of which SAC sites must be selected and very strictly curtails the grounds that can be used as justification for damaging a site. The network of sites is referred to as NATURA 2000 and includes SACs (Special Areas of Conservation) and SPAs (Special Protection Areas) for birds.

The Background to SAC Protection

o The Habitats Directive was transposed into Irish law by the European Natural Habitats Regulations in 1997.

o Sites are supposed to be protected from the time of notification to the landowner a process which has taken place since 1997.

o The SAC regulations also amends the 1963 Planning Act and requires planning authorities when considering an application for a development that is likely to have a significant effect on the SAC, to ensure that an appropriate assessment of the implications of the development for the conservation status of the site is undertaken.

o Sites may contain priority or non-priority habitats and species. Priority habitats include raised and blanket bogs, some types of fens, bog woodlands and turloughs.

o The only justifications for damaging a qualifying "priority" site are "considerations relating to human health and public safety, to beneficial consequences of primary importance of the environment, or further to an opinion from the European Commission, to other imperative reasons of overriding public interest." Justifications for damaging a non-priority site include economic and social considerations. In thoery, therefore,no other consideration should be used to override the SAC designation for a site.

o Should damage occur to a site, Duchas have powers to:
(1) seek an injunction to stop the works
(2) order the landowner to restore the site

o A person is guilty of an offence:
(1) if they carry out notifiable works on a site withoutMinisterial consent
(2) if they fail to carry out restoration works as directed bythe Minister

Progress to Date
The government has put forward 259 sites to the European Commission forconsideration as designated SACs, accounting for 4.3% of our land area.According to the Commission, Ireland has put forward the 3rd smallestpercentage of national territory for designation, followed by closely by Belgium and Germany. Even tiny Luxembourghas put forward 13.6% of its national territory for designation.

Planning impacts on SACs
In a recent report the Irish Wildlife Trust have shownthat 70% of planning applications within SACs are successful. Only one quarter of all planning applications within SACs are looked at by Duchas. Duchas object to only 8% of planning applications.

Aquaculture impacts on SPAs
Birdwathcx Ireland have shown that 26% of aquaculture operations are within SPAs
Duchas routinely approve licence applications in SPAs.
Dept of Marine and Natural Resources mostly follow the comments of Duchas in relation to wildlife issues.

ENDS