Contents
Chairperson’s Foreword									

6Part I: Recommendations and Overview 				

111. Recommendations from the Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss

12

1.1
1.2		
1.3		
1.4		
1.5		
1.6		
1.7		
1.8		
1.9		
1.10
1.11
1.12
1.13
1.14
1.15
1.16
1.17
1.18
1.19

Overarching Recommendations
Strategic Approach to Biodiversity Loss
The Constitution
Resourcing the State’s Approach to the Biodiversity Crisis
Accountability and Compliance in Biodiversity
Supporting Communities
Non-Governmental Organisations
Public Engagement, Education and Awareness
Biodiversity Research and Data
Energy Production
Agriculture
Freshwater
Marine and Coastal Environments
Peatlands
Forestry, Woodlands and Hedgerows
Protected Sites and Species
Invasive Species
Urban and Built Environment
Industry, Business and Tourism

13
15
16
17
18
18
19
19
20
21
21
23
25
26
27
29
30
30
32

2. Background and Main Features of the Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss

33

2.1		
2.2
2.3

2.4		
2.5		

2.6		

Introduction
Terms of Reference
Membership of the Citizens’ Assembly
2.3.1 Enhancing the representativeness of the Assembly
2.3.2 Broadening eligibility criteria
2.3.3 Changes to recruitment methodology
2.3.4 Invitations
2.3.5 Applications
2.3.6 Response rate
2.3.7 Geographic distribution of invitees, applicants and members
2.3.8 Sortition criteria
2.3.9 Demographic profile of members
2.3.10 Review of the recruitment methodology
Chairperson
Governance of the Assembly
2.5.1 Guiding Principles of the Assembly
2.5.2 Steering Group
2.5.3 Expert Advisory Group (EAG)
2.5.4 Rules and Procedures
Evaluation of the Assembly process

34
34
35
35
36
36
36
36
36
36
37
37
38
38
38
38
39
39
39
41
3

3. The Programme

42

Programme Design and Innovations
Programme Outline and Overview
Inaugural Meeting of the Citizens’ Assemblies
First Meeting 14 May 2022
Fieldtrip 11 June 2022
Second Meeting 24-25 September 2022
Third Meeting 15-16 October 2022
Fourth Meeting 5-6 November 2022
Fifth Meeting 26-27 November 2022
Sixth Meeting 21 January 2023

43
45
47
47
48
49
49
50
51
52

Part II: Summary of Assembly Meetings Content

53

4. Summary Content of Meeting 1: 14 May 2022

54

3.1		
3.2		
3.3		
3.4		
3.5		
3.6		
3.7		
3.8		
3.9		
3.10

4.1		
4.2		
4.3		
4.4		
4.5		
4.6		

Biodiversity: What it is, why we should care and how we should respond
Introduction to Biodiversity in Ireland
Ireland’s Land Biodiversity
Ireland’s Marine Biodiversity
What does Biodiversity do for us in Ireland?
Look at Nature Around You

5. Fieldtrip: June 11 2022
5.1		
5.2		
5.3		

Turvey Nature Park
Dublin Port
North Bull Island

6. Summary Content of Meeting 2: 24-25 September 2022
6.1		
6.2		
		
6.3		
6.4		
6.5		
6.6		
6.7		
6.8		
6.9		
6.10
6.11

59
60
61
61
64

How to be a Good Ancestor
65
Video showing the work of the Children and Young People’s Assembly on 		
Biodiversity Loss
65
Biodiversity Loss in Ireland66
6.3.1 Ecology – A Brief Introduction to Ecological Concepts and Main Threats66
6.3.2 Climate Change Policy and Biodiversity
66
Biodiversity Loss: Some of the Evidence
67
Ireland’s EU and International Obligations
68
Mapping Biodiversity Governance in Ireland
69
Video of communities and groups working to conserve biodiversity
70
Ireland’s Biodiversity NGOs – Irish Environmental Network (IEN)
70
Nature Designation and Protection in Ireland
72
The Practical Side of Implementing, Monitoring and Enforcing
74
Resourcing the State’s response to Biodiversity Loss
74
6.11.1 How Our National Budget Policy Works
74
6.11.2 Doughnut Economics
75

7. Summary Content of Meeting 3: 15-16 October 2022
7.1		

55
56
56
57
57
58

The Natural World in Early Ireland

76
77
4

7.2		

Agriculture
7.2.1 Agriculture and Biodiversity
7.2.2 Agricultural Biodiversity: Current policies, programmes and practices
7.2.3 Voices from the Farming Sector
7.2.4 What can we learn from other countries?
7.2.5 Engaging and motivating farmers to reverse biodiversity loss
Forestry and Woodlands
7.3.1 Overview: Woodlands and Forestry – Biodiversity Loss and Recovery
7.3.2 Coillte Forestry and Biodiversity
7.3.3 Woodlands and Forestry Video
Environmental Rights
7.4.1 Environmental Rights and the Rights of Nature
Peatlands
7.5.1 Overview of Peatlands and Biodiversity
7.5.2 Voices from the Peatland Communities
Irish Language and Mythology as Primers for Sustainable Living

7.3		

7.4		
7.5		
7.6		

8. Summary Content of Meeting 4: 5-6 November 2022
8.1		

8.2		
8.3		

8.4		
8.5		

77
77
78
80
84
85
85
85
87
87
88
88
89
89
90
91
92

Freshwater93
8.1.1 Water Quality and Biodiversity Pressures in Ireland’s Freshwaters
93
8.1.2 Freshwater Catchments in Ireland – Issues, Challenges & Solutions for 					
Aquatic Ecosystems
94
8.1.3 Pressures on Freshwater Biodiversity in Ireland85
8.1.4 Voices from the Freshwater Community
96
8.1.5 Overview of Invasive Species and Freshwater98
8.1.6 Freshwater Fish in Ireland – how to protect and restore biodiversity
99
Children’s and Young People’s Assembly presentation
100
Marine and Coastal Environments
100
8.3.1 High-level overview – broader marine biodiversity current status 					and potential measures100
8.3.2 Biodiversity in our oceans – A scientific perspective
101
8.3.3 Voices from the Marine Sector
102
Energy Production
104
8.4.1 Energy production and biodiversity
104
8.4.2 Voices from the Energy Sector
104
Urban and Built Environment
106
8.5.1 High-level overview – Planning and Biodiversity in our Urban/Built Up Areas 106
8.5.2 Nature-based solutions in urban environments, biodiversity & human 					 perspective
107
8.5.3 A Green Future in Utrecht
107
8.5.4 Urban Voices
108

9. Summary Content of Meeting 5: 26-27 November 2022
9.1		
9.2		
9.3		

Appendices

What is the value of Biodiversity?
What is Industry doing and how can they engage with Biodiversity?
Industry Voices

110
111
111
112
116
5

Chairperson’s Foreword
It has been an incredible privilege to chair the
Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss, the firstnational Assembly to consider this issue. Like
many who participated in this Assembly, I have a
new wealth of knowledge on the environment in
Ireland and a new-found urgency to act to saveit.
When invited to take on this role my initial
response was to decline. I felt I simply did notknow enough about biodiversity to take on theposition. One learning that I take from being
part of this Assembly, is that we can all makethe choice to learn more about this important
problem and act for the environment around us.
Each country, group, community and person
has the capacity to make a positive impact on
the world around us, for ourselves and for future
generations who will inhabit this precious planetof ours.
The members of the Assembly, like more than two thousand others, put up their hands to take on
this civic duty. They gave willingly of their time to consider the complex question of biodiversity loss in
Ireland and made recommendations as to how the State might best tackle this urgent matter. We had
a wonderful mix of people in the room from all walks of life and across a huge range of ages, from themost westerly peninsula of Kerry to inner city Dublin, from Argentina and Athlone, from the heart ofUkraine to the wilds of west Cork. There were farmers and fishers, software engineers and solicitors,
chariot makers and taxi drivers. The room captured a snapshot of Irish society. Each member took on
the responsibility to reflect on the problem, to listen and interrogate the best information available, toconsider and converse around the topics outlined in the Terms of Reference, and to eventually agree
recommendations that will be presented to the Oireachtas.
A vast amount of information was given to members from a wide variety of perspectives. It is atestament to them, their commitment, their dialogue and their reflections, that they made 159
recommendations. The number of recommendations speaks to the scale and breadth of the problem

6

of biodiversity loss in Ireland. It also represents the extent of the material presented to the Assembly
and the level of detail which members wished to pursue in their work. This stems, in part, from afundamental disappointment in the capacity demonstrated by the State to coherently and deliberately
tackle biodiversity loss. The members wish to ensure that the problems are addressed from top-down
and bottom-up, at policy and grassroots levels.
I grew up participating in ‘meitheal’s in rural Co. Mayo, where the community gathered and shared
their time and efforts to help a neighbour (in my case in bringing in the hay). To me, the Citizens’
Assembly represents a national scale ‘meitheal’. People, who had no previous connections, gave of
their valuable time to construct and return informed recommendations to the Oireachtas on behalf of
their fellow country men and women. It is a very impressive process to both observe and to be partof.
Like many Irish people, I was aware that a national Biodiversity Emergency had been declared by
the State in 2019. I did not, however, appreciate the sheer scale of the issue. The reassuring greensof our landscape can mask the loss we are experiencing of so many key elements of our naturalenvironment. The figures that the Assembly heard are stark. And the problems are getting worse.
We are consistently losing our hedgerows, likened by one speaker to the blood supply system of
the countryside. Only 2% of the country has native woodland. Over a quarter of Ireland’s regularly
occurring bird species are in danger of extinction. At least one third of protected species are declining
in population, an invisible tragedy happening both on land and under water. Almost 30% of our seminatural grasslands have been lost in the last decade. Less than half of our marine environment can be
described as healthy. Over 70% of our peatlands are in bad status and only a small fragment remain
intact. The majority of our agricultural soil is in a suboptimal state, contaminated by nitrates andphosphates. Most worryingly, our water quality – the very foundation of life – is continuing to decline,with almost 50% of freshwater systems in Ireland in poor and deteriorating condition.
The Assembly was told that we are at a critical juncture. Without action, we will no longer be able
to rely on nature for the very services we need to live. The Assembly’s recommendations are a ‘callto action’ – they ask us all to re-evaluate our current practices across industry, agriculture, social
enterprise, local government, national agencies and government departments. Future generations
are depending on us to act now. Some sectoral interests and lobby groups may resist attempts
to address biodiversity loss, but it is urgent that our policymakers, in particular our politicians, aresupported in making bold decisions to protect, conserve and restore the natural environment in theinterest of all of the people, present and future, on the island of Ireland.
7

A recurring theme that featured in presentation after presentation, and in many submissions, isthat the laws and policies we already have are not being implemented or enforced. At a minimum,
our government should not break or permit the breaking of its own or EU laws. By implementing
and enforcing our current legislation and policies, we can make great strides towards addressing
biodiversity loss. As an Assembly it was frustrating to listen to this litany of shortcomings and failures.
This was emphasised through continuous reminders that biodiverse areas ensure better water, soil
and air quality, are better protected from the fall-out of climate change, store more carbon, and also
contribute to improved human health and well-being.
To protect ourselves, we must protect nature.
In these times, we hear a lot of rhetoric around national pride. As I see it, there is no more profound
way of expressing a pride of place than looking after it. Our native language and indigenous cultures
hold an intrinsic link with, and inherent respect for, nature and the world around us. Countless
metaphors, sayings, similes and proverbs are based on natural phenomena and hold knowledge
by which to know and value nature. Ancient Brehon laws protected nature. Our grandparents andgenerations before us did this and we can learn to do this again. The seanfhocail (proverb) which
best captures, for me, that indelible need for diversity in ecosystems for them to thrive and survive is‘bheadh na coillte ciúin murach an cág’ (the woods would be quiet if only the ‘best’ birds sang). Thereis a place for all creatures, plants and wildlife to exist and, when they do, a healthy balance for allensues.

Answers to the difficult and complex problems we face as a society can only come throughdialogue. Such dialogue can only take place when there is time, trust, and a conscious effort to listen
respectfully to the opinions of others, even when they differ from our own. That was the essenceof this Assembly. Every voice was heard, from the cynical and suspicious to the people with apassionate interest in nature and wildlife. A majority consensus was arrived at through conversation.
Our national Citizens’ Assemblies are an exercise in strengthening democracy by bringing ‘ordinary’
people into this extraordinary deliberative process around policy. In this we ask members of society
to make recommendations on issues that will be discussed, researched and responded to by policy
makers. In a world where democracy is threatened and diluted, this is a process of which Ireland
can be rightly proud. Our assemblies have led to much transformational societal change and, in thisAssembly on Biodiversity Loss, I hope we pass on this remarkable reputation intact.
Future generations will rightly judge us on what we did, or did not do, to address a global crisis.
The benefits of taking positive actions now may not be apparent for a number of decades or evencenturies, but taking a whole of government approach to the whole of the environment without delay
8

will have valuable, lasting consequences. As a nation, we must continue our good work reducing
our emissions, focusing on the circular economy, and abiding by the commitments made at themost recent UN Biodiversity Conference. Ireland has the capacity to lead the world in biodiversity
conservation and environmental restoration.
I would like to thank everyone who participated in this Assembly, particularly all of those who
contributed to the submissions we received from Ireland and around the world. I would like tosincerely thank the speakers who agreed to present at the Assembly, often at short notice, with an
onerous task of presenting a complex subject in a brief but accessible way. I am grateful to them forso generously sharing their time, experience and expertise with members. I would like to thank thefacilitators and notetakers, who allowed members’ views and insights to be heard and recorded. I
would like to dearly thank the Expert Advisory Group whose time, knowledge and advice was integral
to the process. Their sheer commitment to helping the process at every turn was remarkable. I am
deeply grateful to all of the Secretariat involved in the Assembly, in particular, Art O’Leary, Tim Carey,
Cathal O’Regan, Lorraine Kavanagh and Conor O’Malley, who ensured the work ran smoothly andmaintained the integrity of the process.
I sincerely thank each of the members, who are this Assembly, for their time, engagement andvaluable contributions. It was a very special room to be part of. I would also like to thank theircommunities, friends and families for supporting members to share their time by participating in thisimportant civic duty. I would also like to thank the members of the Assembly Steering Group for their
feedback and collaboration.
Finally, I would like to thank my husband and children who were so forgiving of my absence while
undertaking this work.
The Assembly learned that biodiversity encompasses all that we depend on nature for. At the end of
this process, I think I can speak for all of the members in stating: it is time we start valuing our natural
heritage as much as our cultural heritage, start treating our bogs like our Book of Kells, value ourrivers and coastal waters as much as our multinationals, and cherish our forests as a part of our living
history. In doing this, we can be good ancestors.
As chair, I am proud to present these recommendations on behalf of the members of this Citizens’
Assembly on Biodiversity Loss to the Oireachtas. It is now up to our elected officials to consider theseas ways in which the State can respond to the biodiversity crisis we are now living through.
Mairfidh tairbhí na hoibre a theastaíonn ar feadh na nglún(The benefits of the work needed will last generations)

Dr Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháín

9Part I: Recommendations and Overview

1

Recommendations fromthe Citizens’ Assemblyon Biodiversity Loss12

1
After deliberating on how the State can improve its response to the issue of biodiversity loss, theAssembly agreed 159 recommendations. These 73 high-level recommendations and 86 sectoralspecific recommendations were agreed through a mixture of consensus agreement and ballots. The
results of these votes are in Appendix 3.
The nature of these recommendations speaks to the breadth and depth of the work undertaken by the
Assembly. It also highlights the disappointment of the Assembly with the State’s failure to address the
problem, particularly with the lack of enforcement of its own laws and policies.
These recommendations emerged from the Assembly’s recognition that biodiversity has an intrinsic
value that should be recognised and that the essential ecosystem services it provides will be
impossible to replace.
Members of this Assembly call on the Oireachtas to accept these recommendations and implement
them without delay in order to curb the crisis of biodiversity loss and allow for the conservation andrestoration of biodiversity for the people of Ireland, present and future. Members recognise, however,that the State cannot solve biodiversity loss alone. It is the responsibility of the whole of society, fromindividuals to industry across all sectors, to both call for and take action to address the issue.

1.1 Overarching Recommendations
The Assembly believes that the State’s response to the biodiversity crisis requires effective leadership,clear vison and an enabling environment for action. The response to conserving and restoring
biodiversity should take into account the integral heritage and cultural values of our natural world.
1.

The State must take prompt, decisive and urgent action to address biodiversity loss andrestoration and must provide leadership in protecting Ireland’s biodiversity for future generations.

2.

The Assembly believes that the State has comprehensively failed to adequately fund, implement
and enforce existing national legislation, national policies, EU biodiversity-related laws anddirectives related to biodiversity. This must change.

3.

The ambition of the State needs to be significantly increased to reflect the scale of Ireland’s
biodiversity crisis. Adequate funding must be made available to address this crisis. This is likely
to require substantial and sustained increases in expenditure, which should be made available
immediately and guaranteed in the long term.

4.

The responsibility for the implementation and enforcement of biodiversity related legislation,
directives and policies by all state bodies and agencies must be made clear, with each body/agency held publicly accountable for their performance. This should be supported by anindependent review of implementation and enforcement of biodiversity related legislation,
directives and policies.

5.

The State must provide, communicate and implement a plan for the conservation and restorationof biodiversity for the benefit of its people.

6.

Local leadership, local communities and the activities of the Non Governmental Organisation (NGO)sector must be actively developed and resourced to assist the State in addressing the biodiversity crisis.

7.

In taking action to protect and restore biodiversity, nature-based solutions aimed at protecting,sustainably managing and restoring ecosystems should be prioritised where possible.
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8.

As a matter of urgency areas and species of High Nature Value, including but not limited to thenational network of Natura 2000 sites and protected species, should be protected from further
degradation through the implementation and enforcement of existing legislation and directives.
Management plans should also include restoration programmes.

9.

Ireland’s varied land and seascapes across and around the island must be supported, andappropriate monitoring systems designed to suit their local environment. Higher incentives andsupports should be provided to prioritise the preservation and restoration of rare and threatened
species.

10. Ireland needs to recognise its global responsibility, including through our local actions, in termsof our consumerism, resource usage and our international biodiversity responsibilities. The Stateshould advocate for a shift in emphasis in EU and international economic policy away from GDP
expansion as a goal in itself and towards the goals of societal and ecological wellbeing.
11. An all-island approach and wider transboundary approach should be taken into consideration
with regard to biodiversity conservation and restoration.
12. The State should renew and stand by its commitment to implement the objectives and targetsof the EU 2030 Biodiversity Strategy and play a leading and supportive role in the adoption andimplementation of a new EU Nature Restoration Regulation.
13. All governmental departments must explicitly acknowledge the State’s declaration of a
Biodiversity Emergency and take immediate and targeted action.
14. All biodiversity incentives and grants should be results-based, supported by monitoring andevaluation.
15. People in primary production industries should implement practices that conserve biodiversity
and be incentivised for biodiversity enhancement and associated ecosystem service provision.
16. The State must work with all stakeholders to review Ireland’s current food policy in the context
of the biodiversity crisis, particularly in agriculture and marine sectors, to balance between theaffordability and quality of food. This review must take into consideration vulnerable sections of
the population and ensure reasonable standards of living, and result in a plan to address theseissues.
17. The Irish business community needs to engage with biodiversity and show leadership in the same
way that they have begun to engage with the issue of the climate crisis.
18. In order to drastically reduce the use of pesticides by at least 50% by 2030 in line with EU policy,
the State should incentivise and encourage the domestic and commercial use of natural, costfriendly alternatives, sustainable practices and biodiversity-friendly solutions. It should also
regulate the use of chemical pesticides and fertilisers, while maintaining food security. This should
coincide with the improvement of schemes for the safe disposal of unused hazardous materials,
as well as their containers.
19. Examples of good practice in relation to biodiversity protection and enhancement should be
actively identified and supported with funding, infrastructure and other supports provided to enable
replication or expansion of these practices, in partnership with those who design and operate141such initiatives and schemes, e.g. the Burren Programme, Biodiversity Regeneration In a Dairying
Environment (BRIDE) programme. and the Sustainable Uplands Agri-environment Scheme (SUAS).
20. The State is urged to take into account the recommendations from the Children and Young
People’s Assembly on Biodiversity Loss, an initiative featuring our next generation, and continue
to engage with children and young people on the environment.

1.2 Strategic Approach to Biodiversity Loss
Given that the response to the biodiversity crisis requires action across the whole of the State andwhole of society, the Assembly believes there is a need for coordinated action and an over-archingstrategic approach at a national level.
21. There must be a whole of State approach to drafting and implementing a new statutory National
Biodiversity Plan, aligned with the Climate Action Plan, supported by legislation and properly
funded.
This and subsequent plans must not be constrained by electoral cycles and should have clearly
defined ecological targets (e.g. the number of species on the at-risk list to be halved), withappropriate monitoring and timelines, to which all parties at national, regional and local levels are
fully committed.
22. There should be a senior ministerial position, with an associated department, with responsibility
for biodiversity.
23. There should be a permanent, cross-party Standing Oireachtas Committee on Biodiversity
Loss, which will consider and respond to the recommendations of this Assembly, within 6 to 12
months.
24. There should be a new national independent agency to act as a centralised biodiversity
coordinating structure to:i. Coordinate:a. Government departments in their biodiversity-related actions.
b. Government policy and ensure the coherence of these policies.
ii. Coordinate budgets related to biodiversity actions.
iii. Drive consultation around biodiversity actions.
iv. Oversee and coordinate enforcement organisations.
v. Implement, monitor and report biodiversity actions transparently.
vi. Oversee education and public engagement related to biodiversity.
vii. Oversee and coordinate research and data collection.
viii. Act as a point of contact for members of the public and industry to liaise with supports related
to biodiversity conservation and restoration.
ix. Act in alignment with the Climate Change Advisory Council.
x. Set up an Emergency Task Force.
25. The new National Biodiversity Plan and all policies related to biodiversity action at national andlocal level should be developed in partnership with the people and sectors most affected bychanges (i.e. local communities, farmers, fishers, business, etc.). In many cases consultation has
to move beyond the current status quo, with trust having to be rebuilt and relationships realigned.

15

1
26. The new National Biodiversity Plan should have clear targets with ambitious and achievable
timelines at national, regional and county level for halting biodiversity loss, restoring andenhancing biodiversity.
27. In addition to recent developments in judicial structures in environment and planning, the State
must develop an environmental court at Circuit and District Court levels, in order to hold policy
makers, businesses and citizens to account.
28. All citizens should be empowered with ‘legal standing’ to protect nature and biodiversity in court.
29. Each local authority must have at least one full-time dedicated biodiversity officer, the total
number of which should be determined by population density, land mass and coastline.
30. All relevant departments, bodies and agencies that deal with biodiversity should have in-house
ecological expertise to advise on all biodiversity related policies and activities.

1.3 The Constitution
The Assembly believes that ensuring the purposeful and necessary conservation and restoration of
biodiversity will involve a range of measures, including making amendments to the Constitution. Suchactions should be taken to attempt to ensure that nature is protected enough to continue to provide
people with necessary ecosystem services, such as food, clean freshwater and air, and to allow people
to access and enjoy a clean, safe and healthy environment, both now and into the future.
31. There should be a referendum of the people to amend the Constitution with a view to protecting
biodiversity.
The proposal to amend the Constitution should include:a. Human substantive environmental rights, e.g. a right to a clean, healthy, safe environment;a right to a stable and healthy climate; rights of future generations to these or otherenvironmental rights.
b. Human procedural environmental rights, e.g. the Aarhus rights regarding access toenvironmental information, public participation in environmental decision-making and justicein environmental matters.
c. Substantive rights of nature, recognising nature as a holder of legal rights, comparable tocompanies or people e.g. to exist, flourish/perpetuate and be restored if degraded; not to bepolluted/harmed/degraded.
d. Procedural rights of nature, e.g. to be a party in administrative decision-making, litigation, etc.
where rights are impacted/likely to be impacted.

1.4 Resourcing the State’s Approach to the Biodiversity Crisis
The Assembly believes that without adequate funding and resourcing, it will not be possible to curb
the crisis of biodiversity loss or engage in the restoration of biodiversity. Such actions are necessary tocontinue Ireland’s food production, to ensure access to clean freshwater and air, and to ensure accessto safe, healthy environments Members outline that funding should be made available firstly throughgreater efficiency and accountability for public funding, and reprioritisation between current spending
and revenue raising.
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1
When polled, three out of every four members indicated they were prepared to support and pay higher
taxes, based on the principle of ability to pay, in order to make a reality of these recommendations.
32. Sufficient funding and resources to meet the challenges of biodiversity loss must be allocated to
all relevant bodies to sufficiently protect and enhance biodiversity, and implement and enforce
related national and EU laws, directives and policies. This must be guaranteed in the short andlonger term.
33. The Government’s economic strategy needs to continue nurturing and embracing fully the‘Beyond GDP’ concept and ensure that the National Well-being Framework, encompassing
Environment, Climate and Biodiversity, is at the very core of economic decisions made now andin the future.
34. The Well-being Framework for Ireland should be modified so that it more accurately measureseconomic, social and environmental progress in Ireland, with the metrics reported alongside GDP
as an indication of how well Ireland is doing, and be given a strong role in shaping policy andinforming the annual budgetary process.
35. The State must undertake a comprehensive review of current and future taxation and levy
policies, regulations and incentives to assess their impact on biodiversity.
36. The State should significantly increase commitments and long-term funding with specific andtargeted tax incentives and tax breaks to incentivise and support the regenerative economy,
green technology and biodiversity activities.
37. The Assembly supports the State making Ireland a global leader in sustainable finance models.
38. The State should introduce a lower “green rate” for loans that fund biodiversity initiatives.
39. Planning levies should include a proportional contribution, ringfenced to conserve and enhancebiodiversity.
40. In addition to a dedicated biodiversity budget, governmental departments and agencies shouldbe permitted to roll over any unspent biodiversity funding into the next year.
41. The State should establish a framework for corporations and large businesses, as major users ofnatural resources, to provide financial contributions to fund the conservation and restoration of
biodiversity.
42. Local authorities are uniquely placed to deliver biodiversity projects. Biodiversity funding andstaff resources in local authorities must be significantly increased. Local authorities must be
accountable and report on their biodiversity activities. Current resources must be enhanced, andbiodiversity given greater priority in the councils’ activities.
43. New sector-specific levies/charges on harmful imports must be introduced and ring-fenced forbiodiversity. These should include:
i. New sector-specific levies/charges on agricultural exports introduced and ring-fenced forbiodiversity.
ii. New sector-specific levies/charges on retailers introduced and ring-fenced for biodiversity.

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1
1.5 Accountability and Compliance in Biodiversity
The Assembly believes that the laws currently in place regarding the protection of the environment are
not being implemented or enforced, to the detriment of biodiversity and ecosystem services acrossIreland. Penalties and sanctions for breaches in environmental law need to be increased and enforced.
44. There should be an immediate review of existing frameworks and mechanisms for the
implementation and enforcement of biodiversity policy and legislation. This review should identify
those responsible, address gaps in responsibilities and policies, highlight areas with insufficientfunding and result in a plan to address these issues.
45. Sanctions for an offence should be proportionate to the offence so they adequately discourage
negative behaviour (e.g. penalties should be linked to company turnover), with the offenderincurring the cost of undoing the damage. Each governmental department, organisation andagency responsible for enforcement should be provided with training, a clear remit, have sufficient
resourcing and should be held accountable.
46. All penalties for any breach of pollution or environmental legislation/regulations should be
increased to meaningful economic levels, reflecting all damage caused plus enforcement andrestoration costs, with criminal sanction where necessary.

1.6 Supporting Communities
The Assembly believes local communities are key to protecting Ireland’s environment, heritage andculture, and are therefore critical to conserving and restoring biodiversity.
47. The State must provide a streamlined and easily accessible system of small grants, informationand support for the public to undertake biodiversity action on residential properties.
48. The State must provide funding and infrastructural supports to local community and voluntarygroups, including the settled and nomadic Traveller community, and other groups engaged inactions addressing biodiversity loss and restoration, e.g. managing invasive species, participatingin citizen science, creating biodiverse spaces, and protecting and monitoring the health of thelocal environment, etc.
49. The State must continue to promote and support the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan as a way of
supporting communities and individuals to contribute to biodiversity initiatives.
50. The State must align initiatives in Rural Regeneration and Development with local, communitybased biodiversity activities.
51. The State must ensure the expansion of community gardens and allotments through local
authority initiatives in conjunction with private landowners, in both urban and rural communities.

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1.7 Non-Governmental Organisations
The Assembly believes the Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) sector plays a critically importantrole in biodiversity in Ireland by furthering research, engaging communities and acting as a watchdog
in issues related to the environment. As lack of enforcement and implementation of legislation is amajor issue in Ireland, the NGOs have often filled an important gap. However, compared to many othercountries, public funding supports for NGOs in Ireland is poor.
52. The value of NGOs engaged in biodiversity should be recognised in early consultations on all
relevant plans, policies and projects.
53. NGOs engaged in biodiversity should be appropriately funded in the short, medium and long-term
to undertake targeted schemes with measurable outcomes and strict accountability measures.
54. Core funding should be provided for collaborative work between NGOs and their partners.

1.8 Public Engagement, Education and Awareness
The Assembly believes that education and public engagement are key to empowering people to curb
biodiversity loss across the country. With strengthened awareness, individuals, groups and communities
across the country, in all environments from rural to urban, can be encouraged to engage in theconservation and restoration of biodiversity for one another and for the generations coming after us.
55. The public must be encouraged to live in a way which reduces their impact on biodiversity loss.
The State must develop public awareness and engagement campaigns on biodiversity andbiodiversity loss, to educate people on the fundamental role of biodiversity in our lives and provide
resources to inform people on what they can do in their own lives to support biodiversity.
56. The State must develop an interactive website and app with easy-to-understand information
on how the State and EU work together on environmental issues, where Ireland adheres to EU
directives and the penalties of non-adherence. It should provide examples of good practice,information on what individual citizens can do, and details on who to contact for various issues.
The website should highlight what collective action is occurring locally that people can participate
in.
57. The State must establish a public information campaign to promote the benefits of buying local
and seasonal produce.
58. Local authorities should play a central role in informing people of the importance of biodiversity intheir areas.
59. There should be mandatory and ongoing biodiversity training provided for any civil or public
servant whose work impacts on wildlife and biodiversity.
60. The Natura 2000 biodiversity sites provide opportunities for education for local communities. A
programme should be established to promote awareness of the importance and vulnerabilities ofthese sites.

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61. The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NWPS) should be funded to expand its education
remit to make the public more aware of the importance and current conservation status of ourprotected habitats and species.
62. Children and young people are integral to ensuring the environment is protected. In line withthe current National Strategy on Education for Sustainable Development – ESD to 2030, theDepartment of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth with the Department of
Education, the Teaching Council, the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, and the
Teacher Education Support Service(s) should continue to engage in meaningful curriculum reform
and teacher education to explicitly incorporate teaching and learning on biodiversity in earlychildhood, primary and post-primary curricula.
63. In line with the current National Strategy on Education for Sustainable Development - ESD to2030, the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Scienceand relevant agencies, such as the National Skills Council, Regional Skills Fora, Expert Groupon Future Skills Needs, SOLAS etc., should work with further and higher education providers
to develop a greater number of easily accessible further and higher education programmes,
apprenticeship and community-based education related to biodiversity and environmental
sciences.
64. School grounds and local public amenities need to be developed as a support to a diverse andmeaningful nature education. In line with this, basic biodiversity training for school staff, including
maintenance and grounds staff, should be rolled out on a national basis.
65. The Green Schools Initiative should be reformed to ensure nature and biodiversity feature in theinitial stages of the programme.

1.9 Biodiversity Research and Data
In order to monitor biodiversity and the impacts on biodiversity of various activities and policies, it isessential that biodiversity and related resources are regularly measured against high-quality baseline data.
66. The State must develop a research strategy to support the national and EU Biodiversity, soil andwater strategies, involving all agencies, higher-education institutes and other organisations.
67. The State must create, publish and maintain an integrated habitat, species and land-usage map
for the island of Ireland to identify habitat loss and improvement, to support local community
awareness and to inform policies and actions of state bodies and organisations.
68. The State must increase funding to bodies and agencies, including the National Biodiversity Data
Centre, local authorities, and State agencies such as the Natural History Museum and Teagasc,
to carry out research related to biodiversity.
69. The State must fund a programme of work to promote and support citizen science (scientificresearch conducted with participation of the public) on biodiversity-related research.
70. The National Biodiversity Data Centre must be established on a statutory basis, its funding
secured, and its role enhanced, particularly with regard to data generation, education, community
engagement and citizen science.
71. Increased funding should be made available for the research of new and emerging bestpractices that offer alternatives to overexploitation of natural resources.

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1.10 Energy Production
In terms of its energy production Ireland has the potential to tackle the climate crisis, while also
addressing the biodiversity crisis. In this, Ireland should reinforce its ambitions to produce renewableenergy.
72. The State must prioritise the shift to all forms of renewable energy to achieve decarbonisation,
while ensuring that these developments undertake full consideration of local biodiversity, do not
negatively impact biodiversity and enhance biodiversity wherever possible.
73. The State should ringfence a percentage of funds raised through all energy production forbiodiversity conservation measures.

1.11 Agriculture
As the majority of land across Ireland is used for agriculture, the Assembly believes that the agricultureindustry and its approach to land-use have a major impact on biodiversity. Biodiversity underpins our
production system providing pollination, nutrient recycling, soil structure, pest control, regulation ofwater supply, etc. Biodiversity is currently undervalued in our agriculture production system and policy
framework.
Acknowledging farmers as the custodians of the land, with a rich knowledge and understanding of
the environment, the agriculture industry can make the most impact on conserving and restoring
biodiversity.
74. Current State policy on the management of biodiversity on agricultural lands is not sufficient andrequires fundamental review and change to support and incentivise farmers and landowners toprotect and restore biodiversity.
75. The Government must ensure that Ireland’s food production is in line with commitments to theAgenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Agreement, the EU Green Deal andcurrent legal obligations to protect biodiversity, genetic resources (e.g. seed diversity) and water
quality. It must phase out all environmentally harmful subsidies in the agricultural and food sector.
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76. Government departments, State and Semi State agencies shall ensure their work is done in a
way which ensures collaborative planning, consultation in decision-making and implementation
with farmers, local authorities and community groups. This must be underpinned byacknowledging that there is a need for local responses to local environments. Community led,
peer-to-peer farming initiatives must maintain their community-led ethos once they are rolled out
nationwide. (The Burren Programme and the BRIDE projects provide potential templates.)
77. Biodiversity targets in national schemes (i.e. Common Agriculture Programme (CAP)/ Agri-Climate
Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES)) must be made significantly more ambitious, detailed andfocused on the medium to long-term. Funding must be increased to support this ambition.
78. Public incentives and payments for farmers must not restrict them in their ambition to makechange for the benefit of biodiversity. All biodiversity incentives for farmers shall be results-basedover the whole farm, with farmers who protect and enhance biodiversity rewarded and paid forthe ecosystem services they contribute.
79. Increased access to agri-environmental and payments-on-results schemes must be available toall farmers with commensurate funding.
80. The State must support community leadership and peer-to-peer support in order to shareknowledge and assist local farmers and communities to understand and replicate goodbiodiversity practice.
81. The State must further subsidise and incentivise organic farming and locally grown produce.
Sufficient resources must be deployed to support an ambitious implementation of Ireland’s
Strategy for the Development of the Organic Sector for the period 2019 to 2025, to ensure amore supportive environment for the development of organic food and farming in Ireland and for
subsequent policies relating to the medium to long-term development of the sector.
82. Bord Bia must significantly increase the promotion of the organic farming sector in Ireland andactions supporting the Farm to Fork strategy.
83. People must be encouraged to consume a more plant-based diet.
84. Biodiversity awareness and education training programmes need to be instigated and improved
across the agriculture sector, including for farmers, advisors, policy makers, food processors andretailers.
85. The Green Cert must be adapted by increasing the proportion of credits for sustainable farming.
Modules should include the identification and management of nature/biodiversity features on
farmland, combining latest scientific information and traditional knowledge, recognising andpreserving skills built by generations of farmers.
86. The State must offer incentives through agri-environment schemes to farmers that achieve
high soil quality status, either from the start of the monitoring programme or as a result of theiremploying remedial measures.
87. In line with EU Soils Strategy, a National Centre for Soil Science must be established based on
up-to-date technology where soil testing of physical, chemical and biological properties of soil is
subsidised for farmers.
88. The State must require sufficient information on commodities’ labels and menus to improve consumer
understanding of the origin of their food and the impact of their choices on biodiversity/environment.
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89. More farms and farmers must be encouraged and rewarded for adopting the Silvopastureapproach to farming – planting native deciduous trees in amongst pasture lands.
90. The State must encourage use of multi-species mixtures and phase out use of monoculture
grass seed mixtures.

1.12 Freshwater
Ireland has a rich network of rivers and streams (over 84,800 kms) and over 12,000 lakes which coverabout 2% of its land area. They connect our uplands and coasts, and our urban and rural areas. Three
decades of monitoring of water systems has shown the ongoing loss of water quality, which is severely
impacting the biodiversity of our rivers and lakes and has a devastating effect on the quality of drinking
water. The poor condition of our freshwater systems is an urgent problem that requires an immediate
and coordinated national response. Suitable actions must be taken to reduce the impact of nutrients,
particularly nitrates, on our freshwater systems.
91. The management of our freshwater systems requires immediate action. It requires increased
level of ambition, increased resources for Water Framework Directive implementation (andtherefore aquatic biodiversity protection and mitigation), a focus on water quality and aquatic
biodiversity outcomes, clarity on roles and responsibilities and accountability for achievement of
the outcomes.

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92. The State must provide a single body to oversee and co-ordinate the many relevant bodies thatmanage, implement, and enforce legislation and policies relevant to freshwater.
93. There must be urgent increases in investment by Irish Water to build new and improve existingwater treatment plants to prevent the unacceptable discharge of raw or partially treated sewage
into any fresh or marine waters. The current timelines and targets are inadequate.
94. The management of water catchment areas must be greatly improved, with assessments ofwater quality to be updated regularly to guide action on restoring water quality.
95. Riparian buffer zones, related to agriculture, forestry, industry and extractive processes and urban
development must be expanded and take into account local conditions to prevent nutrient andsediment run-off. Schemes must be put in place to incentivise landowners to protect waterways,
with incremental subsidies depending on the width and quality of buffer zones.
96. Local and other relevant authorities must be held responsible for maintaining and improving
the conditions of rivers in their areas, working with each other and with State agencies, such as
Office of Public Works (OPW), Coillte, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Inland
Fisheries Ireland, industry, farmers, private landowners, community groups, etc. Furthermore,
local authorities and landowners must maintain the highest standards to riparian zones along therivers in their areas.
97. It is imperative that penalties for polluting freshwater are significantly increased and enforcement
considerably improved.
98. Farmers must have access to continuous training and up to date research in actions and land
management practices that protect freshwater biodiversity.
99. The State must increase support for community groups and NGOs that are working on key
projects to improve freshwater systems – e.g. support for Irish Rivers Trusts, group water
schemes, angling and community groups.
100. The 1945 Arterial Drainage Act is no longer fit for purpose and must be reviewed and updated inorder to take proper account of the biodiversity and the climate crisis.
101. Nature-based solutions must be included in State and community programmes to tackle flood
management and should include whole of catchment area hydromorphology planning andrestoration.
102. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), supported by Inland Fisheries Ireland and an expert
group, must conduct a complete analysis and survey of all catchment areas to develop a National
Hydromorphology Plan.
103. Motorway attenuation pools must be more widely used and incorporate the use of biodiverse
wetlands. The forestry and extractive industries must have the highest standards of attenuation
pools and sediment traps applied to their drainage activities.
104. Soil sealing poses a growing threat to our waterways and hydromorphology through surface
water run-off. New regulations must be developed to limit the permissible area of soil sealingaround all new buildings and other developments that are subject to planning. All other surface
finishes must be made of permeable surfaces.

2411.13 Marine and Coastal Environments
Ireland has a vast marine environment, which is currently under-recognised and undervalued. The Irish
State has committed to designating 30% of Irish waters as Marine Protected Areas by 2030. This is inline with our commitments under the EU Biodiversity Action Plan. However, the Assembly heard that
Ireland has failed to achieve “Good Environmental Status” for over half of the descriptors (6 of 11) in theexisting EU Marine strategy framework, including in biological diversity.
105. The State shall designate and effectively manage an ambitious network of Marine Protection
Areas, in line with EU targets of 30% of Ireland’s Maritime Area by 2030.
106. The State shall create a National Marine Biodiversity Coordination Body to have responsibility forthe implementation of Marine Protected Areas, the achievement of Good Environmental Status
and wider marine conservation and restoration initiatives.
107. The State must implement ambitious marine conservation measures under the Marine Strategy
Framework Directive to ensure ‘Good Environmental Status’ for Ireland’s seas.
108. A proportion of funds raised by the State through fines and levies for activity in the marine
environment must be used for the protection and restoration of marine biodiversity.
109. The State must act to ensure fish stocks in Irish waters are well managed through quotas,
monitoring and no fish zones, supporting income transition for fishers who will need to change
their way of earning as policies on Marine Protected Areas and offshore energy evolve, for thenecessary conservation and restoration of biodiversity.
110. As a matter of urgency, the State must increase actions and legislation to considerably reduce
single use plastics and microplastics to minimise pollution within its waters and along its shores.
111. The siting, development and construction of energy generation at sea (both pylon and floating)must be done in close collaboration with the fishing community and relevant marine biodiversity
authorities. (See also recommendation 72).
112. All enterprise involved in marine extraction or exploration must have a strict biodiversity net gain
clause attached to their development permission and must be responsible for the ongoing andfuture management and enhancement of the biodiversity of their sites.

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1.14 Peatlands
Ireland’s peatlands are an integral part of our national culture and heritage. They are also one of ourrichest resources of biodiversity and carbon sinks. Restoration of peatlands will have clear benefits
for both climate and biodiversity, as well as health benefits for local communities and potential newrevenues through eco-tourism.

113. An updated National Peatland Action Plan must be developed with clear, measurable, realistic
and timed goals and sufficient funding to protect and restore peatlands.
114. The cessation of turf-cutting on protected areas must be fully implemented and enforced. To
facilitate a true ‘just transition’, the State must provide adequate financial assistance to offer
viable alternatives to people currently predominantly reliant on peat for heating their homes.
115. The State must promote community engagement and wider awareness of the value of peatland
restoration for nature and culture.
116. The remits of Bord Na Móna and Coillte must each be reviewed to include a focus on peatland
restoration and rehabilitation projects, with targeted outcomes on biodiversity conservation. The
results of these outcomes must be freely available and published annually.
117. All enterprise involved in the harnessing of renewable energy from or on all peatland must havea strict biodiversity net gain clause attached to their development permission and must be
responsible for the ongoing and future management and enhancement of the biodiversity of theirsites.
118. The State must develop a cross-agency response team to review practices of prescribed burningand address issues around implementation of guidance and recommendations to stop illegal
burning.
119. The State must encourage and incentivise peatland owners to engage in the active protection ofpeatland biodiversity through appropriate management and restoration activities.
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1.15 Forestry, Woodlands and Hedgerows
Ireland ranks lowest in Europe for tree cover. There has been a substantial increase in forest cover inthe last century but much of this has been through monoculture plantation, which has issues related
to water quality and biodiversity. Improved forestry management, together with native woodlandenhancement and creation, have the potential to contribute solutions for nature, water and climate.
The Assembly believes that Ireland’s woodlands and forestry require a change in management
approach for the benefit of its people now and the generations to come.
120. There is a conflict of interest between business aims and corporate responsibility, particularly forState agencies. The State must fundamentally reassess the constitution, goals and operationsof Coillte and the 1988 Forestry Act (as amended). This reassessment must ensure biodiversity
protection and positive eco-system services are core objectives for Coillte, alongside providing
higher quality timber, meaningful employment and benefits to the community.
121. State-owned woodlands should be recognised and managed as a strategic, long-term national
asset for the benefit of the common good.
122. Afforestation requires long-term goals and timelines. The State must legislate and provide
funding for long-term investments in forestry, with strategic and ambitious emphasis on native
woodlands. In addition, the State must ensure its afforestation strategy is not negatively
impacting on biodiversity by establishing an effective monitoring system for the Forestry
Programme.
123. A new national strategy for the protection, maintenance, restoration and expansion of Ireland’s
network of hedgerows must be developed urgently. Existing legislation and regulations regarding
hedgerows must be reviewed, strengthened and fully enforced, with due regard to public safety.
Sufficient results-based incentives must be made available to support all aspects of their proper
management. In particular, the new CAP schemes should recognise and reward good hedgerow
quality.

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1124. Forests currently planted and those already felled on peatlands are a significant and historic
problem. The State should remedy this issue promptly and on a significant scale.
125. The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and the Marine must implement incentives for State,
Semi State and commercial bodies to establish more nurseries for the cultivation of indigenous
hedgerow species and indigenous broadleaf tree species.
126. A significant proportion of profit earned through Coillte’s commercial activities should be
ringfenced and re-invested directly back into biodiverse forestry initiatives.
127. The State must plan for appropriate felling management, including provision for continuous coverto encourage a more biodiverse and sustainable mixed forestry management model.
128. The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and the Marine must ensure that licensing requires siteby-site ecological assessments to ensure that biodiversity is not negatively impacted both within
and outside protected sites.
129. The use of pesticides in public and private forestry is to be reduced by at least 50%.
130. Hedge management courses and certification should be reintroduced and it should be arequirement that all hedge cutting contractors and their employees complete such courses, andbe licenced.
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1.16 Protected Sites and Species
Ireland’s network of protected sites for habitats and species of national and international conservation
concern are a key aspect of our efforts to restore and enhance biodiversity. The Assembly believes thatthe designation and management of protected sites and species has not been sufficiently overseen by
the State. This has led to failures in managing and protecting biodiversity, conflict with stakeholders,
including landowners, and a lack of awareness across society of the existence and status of ourprotected sites and species.
131. The designated sites and species are among our most important cultural, heritage, andbiodiversity resources and their management needs to be sufficiently resourced to meet our EU
obligations.
132. The National Parks and Wildlife Service and other relevant agencies must be provided withtargeted funding to provide sufficient resources and staff to manage designated sites and protect
species, produce and implement management plans, enforce protections for designated sites onland and sea.
133. Protected sites do not exist in isolation. These ecosystems require connectivity with areas
outside these sites, with links between protected sites. These connections and links need to beconsidered, protected and improved in local authority planning and other activities.
134. The hunting open season order list must be reviewed regularly to ensure alignment with theendangered species list.

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11.17 Invasive Species
Invasive species are a major threat to biodiversity nationally and internationally and have the potential toimpact human wellbeing.
135. The management of invasive species needs to be carried out on an all-Island basis.
136. Biosecurity must be increased at all points of entry to the country, in line with best international
practice.
137. The State must provide funding, education and infrastructural supports to engage local
community groups in appropriately managing invasive species, which negatively impact native
habitats and species.
138. The State must produce a multi-agency National Invasive Species Plan to manage, monitor andcollate information on the distribution of invasive species across the country. This should be used
for coordinated control programmes and community awareness campaigns.
139. The State must introduce effective population controls regarding invasive animal species, such as
non-native deer and mink.
140. The State must act immediately to put a timeline on the phasing out of, and eventual ban of, thesale of invasive species, e.g. Cherry Laurel.
141. Regulations for the importation of recreational wildlife, classed as invasive species, must be
reviewed.
142. Schemes to incentivise people to buy native plants, shrubs and trees, including native fruiting
trees and shrubs, to support garden biodiversity over non-native species should be devised andencouraged.

1.18 Urban and Built Environment
Urban environments have an enormous role to play in the conservation and restoration of biodiversity.
This is particularly important considering the housing crisis Ireland is currently experiencing and in viewof the value of green spaces to populations living in urban environments. Integration of nature andnature-based solutions within urban areas can improve human wellbeing in these areas.
143. The State must reform and update the planning and building regulations and legislation to better
consider biodiversity in all new developments, with specific evidence-based and locally relevant
biodiversity and environmental measures (e.g. inclusion of nesting bricks, restriction of artificial
grass, green planting, corridors, sand and water, etc.).
144. Planning policy must be updated to require all new developments to have a significant net-gain
for the environment and biodiversity.
145. In line with international best practice, the State must increase mandatory requirements for apercentage of green spaces that support biodiversity in urban areas.
146. Local authorities must raise the status of biodiversity to ensure that this is addressed andchampioned at the highest level in the organisation.
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1147. The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), as well as bodies prescribed in legislation
with regard to biodiversity and planning, including An Taisce, should be properly funded andresourced to effectively carry out their planning and development roles.
148. The State must utilise public spaces, such as bus shelters and roofs, to create green corridors,
green walls/roofs etc., to support pollinators and promote biodiversity.
149. Authorities must incorporate ecological expertise in decision-making regarding planning.
150. All Environmental Impact Assessments and Reports, and Appropriate Assessments and Natura
Impact Statements must automatically be lodged with the National Biodiversity Data Centre so
the data and information can be stored and made publicly accessible, with sufficient funding
provided for such action.
151. Each Local Authority must include a Green Infrastructure Strategy in County/City Development
Plans which includes corridors between urban and rural biodiverse habitats, creation of new
biodiverse spaces, retrofitting of existing spaces and restoration of degraded biodiversity.
152. The State must introduce tax incentives and grants for capital investment in retrofitting existingbuildings with biodiverse initiatives (roof gardens, vertical gardens etc.).
153. The State must review An Bord Pleanála and local authority legislation and practices to takefull cognisance of the Aarhus Convention, create more transparency and grant citizens greater
access to information and inclusion in decision-making related to environmental issues inplanning.
154. As part of the new National Biodiversity Plan relevant Government departments and agencies
must publish central advice for local authorities on incorporating nature based solutions andecological features into new developments, ecosystem restoration, green infrastructure andbiodiversity, addressing pollution issues (chemical, light, etc.), reinforcement and/or offsettingthat can be linked to achieving local and national biodiversity objectives that would be identified indevelopment plans and local area plans.

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1.19 Industry, Business and Tourism
The Assembly believes that the needs of Ireland’s economy must be balanced with the need toconserve and restore our natural resources and biodiversity.

155. State and Semi State agencies and bodies responsible for all major state infrastructure should
prioritise the protection and restoration of biodiversity in strategic planning, with measurable
goals and timelines that are held to account by a newly established, independent, central agency(see recommendation 24).
156. In addition to actions around the climate crisis, businesses should be required to take biodiversity
into account through programmes which promote industry’s engagement with biodiversity.
157. Ireland’s tourism industry is dependent on the protection and good status of the environment
and important biodiversity sites are often high amenity sites. The promotion of eco-tourism andamenities should therefore be consistent with biodiversity conservation and visitors should bemanaged to ensure that biodiversity is not damaged. Opportunities to include biodiverse positive
areas and projects should be encouraged as an additional tool within the overall promotion of
Ireland’s tourism industry.
158. A scheme should be developed, similar to the Farming for Nature initiative, in which businesses
can demonstrate real and substantial biodiversity credentials.
159. All large businesses and financial organisations must develop a mandatory assessment anddisclosure process of harmful impacts to biodiversity, with a mandated role (similar to a Healthand Safety or Well-being Officer).
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Background and Main Featuresof the Citizens’ Assembly on
Biodiversity Loss33

2
2.1 Introduction
The Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss was one of four Citizens’ Assemblies contained in the
Programme for Government, Our Shared Future1.
In February 2022, following debates in both Houses, the Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss wasformally established by way of resolutions of Dáil Éireann2 and Seanad Éireann3.

2.2 Terms of Reference
The resolutions set out the Terms of Reference for the Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss are as
follows:“A Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss, with a total of 100 members including an independent
Chairperson and 99 randomly selected members of the public, shall be convened to examine how theState can improve its response to the issue of biodiversity loss, and to bring forward proposals in thatregard.
The Assembly shall consider, inter alia:• the international, European, national, regional
and local dimensions to the biodiversity
emergency;• the threats presented by biodiversity loss andthe opportunities to reverse this loss;• the main drivers of biodiversity loss, theirimpacts and the opportunity of addressingthese drivers;• the perspectives of the general public,
representative groups, advocacy groups,
experts and policy makers on biodiversity
loss, and its impact on Ireland;• opportunities to develop greater policy
coherence and strategic synergies between
biodiversity policy and other policy priorities
including, but not limited to, economic
development, climate action, sustainable
development, agriculture and tourism;• opportunities to promote greater public
understanding of, and support for, urgent
action in response to the biodiversity
emergency; and• opportunities to improve the State’s responseto the challenge of biodiversity loss, howthat response can best be resourced andimplemented in a strategic and coordinatedmanner, and how progress can be measured.
1
2
3

The Assembly shall:• commence and run in parallel with the Dublin
Citizens’ Assembly;• hold its inaugural meeting in April 2022;• adopt a work programme designed to allow
for the completion of consideration of the
topics within an eight-month period;• conclude its work and submit its report ideallyno later than nine months from its date ofcommencement, and sooner if possible;• have authority to determine a revised
timeline for completion in the event of
unexpected disruptions caused by the
Covid-19 pandemic or other extraordinary
circumstances;• implement continuous improvement andadopt innovative working methods informedby learnings from previous Citizens’
Assemblies and international best practice,including in relation to the methodology
for member recruitment, to the runningof Assemblies subject to public healthmeasures, and to developing internal capacity
to ensure the quality of the deliberative
process;• preclude from membership of the Assemblies
any individual who is either:(i) a politician currently serving in either Houseof the Oireachtas or the European Parliament;

https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/7e05d-programme-for-government-our-shared-future/https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/debate/dail/2022-02-22/9/
https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/debate/seanad/2022-02-23/10/

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•

•
•
•

(ii) a lobbyist as provided for under the
Regulation of Lobbying Act 2015; or(iii) a person unwilling to commit to adhering
to public health measures as prescribed byGovernment and public health authorities
from time to time;
have a Chairperson appointed for a period of
up to twelve months, with scope to extend
the term should circumstances warrant, andthat an honorarium should be paid to the
Chairperson based on a per diem rate tobe sanctioned by the Department of Public
Expenditure and Reform;
make payment of a nominal honorarium toAssembly members to recognise their civic
commitment;
have staff assigned to provide a Secretariat
to the Assembly and to support the
Chairperson;
agree its own rules of procedure and work
programme to enable the effective conduct ofits business in as economical and efficient amanner as possible;•••

determine all issues by a majority of the votes
of members present and voting, other thanthe Chairperson who will have a casting votein the case of an equality of votes;
operate in an open and transparent
manner, including by live streaming public
proceedings; andmake a report and recommendation(s)to the Houses of the Oireachtas on thematters before it. On receipt, the Housesof the Oireachtas will refer the reportof the Assembly for consideration to arelevant Committee of both Houses;
the Committee will, in turn, bring its
conclusions to the Houses for debate.
Furthermore, the Government will
provide in the Houses of the Oireachtasa response to each recommendation of
the Assembly and, if accepting some or allof the recommendations, will indicate thetimeframe it envisages for implementing thoserecommendations.”

2.3 Membership of the Citizens’ Assembly
The Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss was comprised of 100 members, including 99 membersof the public, randomly selected from households across Ireland, and an independent Chairperson
appointed by the Taoiseach.

2.3.1 Enhancing the representativeness of the Assembly

Informed by the experience of previous assemblies and international best practice, the Government
and the Houses of the Oireachtas mandated two important changes to how members were selected.
These changes were designed to improve the diversity of Assembly membership and ensure that it
was as broadly representative as possible of the general public. The changes introduced entailed:(i) broadening the eligibility criteria, and(ii) adopting an improved recruitment method, in line with international best practice, with reference inparticular to the OECD Recommendation on Open Government4, the OECD Good Practice Principles
for Deliberative Processes for Public Decision Making5 and countries with extensive experience of
citizens’ assemblies, including Canada and Australia.
We are particularly grateful to Iain Walker, the Executive Director of newDemocracy in Australia, for his
advice and support in the management of the recruitment process.

4
5OECD (2017) https://www.oecd.org/gov/Recommendation-Open-Government-Approved-Council-141217.pdf

Chwalisz, C. (2020), “Good practice principles for deliberative processes for public decision making”, in Innovative Citizen 		
Participation and New Democratic Institutions: Catching the Deliberative Wave, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/b40aab2a-en.

35

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2.3.2 Broadening eligibility criteria

Previous citizens’ assemblies had restricted
membership to people who were enrolled on
the electoral register, leading to the exclusion ofcertain sections of Irish society, including nonnationals and persons marginalised or otherwise
distanced from the democratic system.
In order to ensure that the Citizens’ Assembly on
Biodiversity Loss was optimally representativeof wider society, eligibility was broadened toallow any adult resident in the State to potentiallybecome a member of the Assembly6. This had
the effect of including people who were not Irish
citizens and others who for whatever reason
were not enrolled on the electoral register.

2.3.3 Changes to recruitment methodology

For the first time, the recruitment process was
based on written invitations to randomly selectedhouseholds (see Appendix 1). This differed fromthe methodology used by previous assemblies,
which relied on polling companies conducting
door-to-door interviews to select members. Thisnew methodology was designed to improve thegeographic spread of members and to increase
the quality and inclusivity of the random selection
process.

2.3.4 Invitations

A total of 20,000 households in the State
received a postal invitation from TaoiseachMicheál Martin T.D. to nominate one adult fromthat household to apply to become a member.
The sample of households that received
invitations was randomly generated from the

GeoDirectory database of households, which is
the most comprehensive available database ofhouseholds in the country

2.3.5 Applications

Written invitations were addressed genericallyto “The Householder”, as distinct from named
persons within the household. Each household
was asked to nominate just one adult from thathousehold. Invitations were non-transferable
between households.
Applicants from eligible households were asked
to register their interest in becoming a member ofthe Assembly, either by post, by phone or online.
As part of the registration process, additional key
demographic information was requested fromapplicants.

2.3.6 Response rate

A total of 20,000 invitations were issued, with
2,261 responses received, of which 2,130 werevalid applications. 131 applications were deemedinvalid.
The overall response rate of over 10% compares
favourably with the international experience for
Citizens’ Assemblies, where the response rate
typically ranges between 3% and 5%.

2.3.7 Geographic distribution of invitees,
applicants and members

The maps below show the spread andconcentration of invitations, applications andmembers across Ireland.

Figure 1 Geographical distribution of invitees, applicants and members.

Invitations (20,000 households)
6

Applications (2,130)

Assembly Members (100)With the exception of those categories indicated in the Terms of Reference, namely (i) a politician currently serving in either House of
the Oireachtas or the European Parliament; (ii) a lobbyist as provided for under the Regulation of Lobbying Act 2015; or (iii) a person
unwilling to commit to adhering to public health measures as prescribed by Government and public health authorities from time to time.

36

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2.3.8 Sortition criteria

The final selection of public members of the Assembly was based on a stratified random selection of 99
members of the public, using six demographic variables:
•
•
•
•
•

GenderAge
Location
Occupational status (proxy indicator for socio-economic status and disability)
Language (proxy indicator of nationality)

2.3.9 Demographic profile of members

Using a demographic profile of the general public based on CSO Census data, targets were set for
selecting members by gender, age group and location by region. Supplementary criteria of language
and occupation were used to optimise diversity and inclusivity of membership.
Tables 1 – 3 below show the targets, and results, of the stratified random selection, while Tables 4-5
indicate the wider diversity and inclusivity achieved among the group.

Table 1: Gender profile of assembly members
OutcomeTargetGenderFemale
Male
Total

50
49
99

50
49
99

Table 2: Age profile of assembly members
OutcomeTarget
Age
18-24
25-44
45-64
65 plus
Total

12
36
32
19
99

12
36
32
19
99

Table 3: Geographic profile of assembly members
Location byregionDublinRest of Leinster
Munster
Connaught - Ulster
Total

TargetOutcome

27
27
26
19
99

27
27
27
18
99

Table 4: First spoken language
Language

EnglishOthers(Polish, Romanian, Portuguese,Ukrainian, Lithuanian, Spanish,
Turkish, Croatian)
Total

91
8

99

Table 5: Occupational status
Occupational status
Student

9

Looking after home / family

4

In paid employment (as an employee)

45

Farmer

6

Unemployed2

Self-employed18

Unable to work due to permanent
sickness or disability

0Retired
Total

15
99

37

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2.3.10 Review of the recruitment methodology

The membership profile of the Citizens’ Assemblyon Biodiversity Loss shows how effective
the recruitment process was in optimising
the representativeness and inclusivity of theAssembly.
The alignment of targets and results based oncore demographic criteria (gender, age groupand location), supplemented by additional
diversity and inclusion criteria, means thatmembership of the Assembly was as broadly
representative as possible of Irish society. Several
factors were important in ensuring that the profileof the membership successfully mirrored that of
the general population, including:•broadening eligibility criteria to include any
adult living in the State;• issuing initial invitations to a large cohort ofhouseholds (20,000);• generating a high response rate to invitations
issued (>10%), including through providing
multiple response channels (online, telephone
and postal);• gathering key demographic information(gender, age group and location) to support arobust stratified random selection process;• gathering secondary demographic indicators(language, employment status andoccupation) to optimise diversity among themembership.

2.4 Chairperson
Dr Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin was invited by
Taoiseach Mícheál Martin, TD, to chair the
Assembly as the 100th member. In this role she
was responsible for the smooth running of theAssembly, in accordance with the rules andTerms of Reference contained in the resolution of

the Houses of the Oireachtas, and was the solejudge of order. Should a casting vote have beenrequired in deciding on any recommendations,this would also have been her responsibility. She
was supported in her work by the Secretariat andExpert Advisory Group.

2.5 Governance of the Assembly
2.5.1 Guiding Principles of the Assembly

At its first meeting in May 2022 the membersof the Citizens’ Assembly adopted a set of six
guiding principles, intended to provide a valuesbased approach to the deliberative process of
the Assembly and based on previous Citizens’
Assemblies held in Ireland.
The six principles are stated as follows:
Openness:
This Assembly will operate with complete
transparency with all plenary meetings being
streamlined live at www.citizensassembly.ie
and all documentation, including submissions,freely available on the website. The Assembly is
open to hearing from all sections of society on
any issue associated with our remit, including
our diaspora and young people under 18 yearsof age, who are not directly represented in the
Assembly membership;

Fairness:
It is important that:• we allow the full spectrum of views to beheard on every issue;• our briefing material for Assembly members isof the highest quality;• presentations by selected speakers arefactual, informative, impartial and accessible.
Equality of voice amongst all Assembly
members:
Each member will have the opportunity to voice
their opinions and allow other members to voice
theirs, with no-one dominating the discussion;
Respect:
Members will respect each other’s opinions by
ensuring that everyone can make contributions
and express their views freely without fear of
personal attacks or criticism;38

2
Efficiency:
The Assembly will make best use of our limited
time together and ensure that members aresupported to the greatest extent possible,
including in their preparation for meetings;
Collegiality:
Members will recognise that we are a diverse
group and will endeavour to work together ina spirit of collaboration and community as weembark on this important task.

2.5.2 Steering GroupA Steering Group was formed to provide a forum
for representatives of the members to engage
with the Chairperson and Secretariat concerning
the planning and operation of the Citizens’
Assembly.
The Chairperson sought nominations formembership of the Group at the inaugural
meeting and all 6 Assembly members who
put themselves forward were appointed to theGroup.
In advance of each meeting of the Assembly theSteering Group considered a draft programme
for the meeting and had the opportunity toengage with and provide feedback to the
Chairperson and Secretariat.
The Steering Group also met with the
Chairperson and Secretariat at key juncturesduring the process to discuss governance andscheduling issues, particularly in relation to theballoting process.
Members of the Steering Group were:• Sheelagh Brady• Ruairi Breslin• Anca Cerbu• Louise Conlon• Dan O’Dwyer• Jenny Santiago-Young

2.5.3 Expert Advisory Group (EAG)As provided for in the Oireachtas Resolution,
the Chair established an Expert Advisory Group
from relevant disciplines and fields to assist with
its work in terms of preparing information andadvice.

The EAG was constituted to provide a range ofperspectives and expert opinion in relation to thework of the Citizens’ Assembly.
The EAG members were:• Professor Tasman Crowe, Director of the
Earth Institute, UCD and Chair of the National
Biodiversity Forum• Dr Mary Dobbs, Associate Professor at the
Department of Law at Maynooth University,
specialising in environmental law andgovernance• Dr Micheál Ó Cinnéide, former Director of theEnvironmental Protection Agency, and former
Director of Marine Environment and Food
Safety at the Marine Institute• Professor Jennifer McElwain, Chair of Botany,
TCD• Dr James Moran, Senior Lecturer in Ecology
and Biology, ATU, and project lead on theAgro-ecology and Rural Development
Research Group• Professor Ian Montgomery, Emeritus
Professor of Animal Ecology, School of
Biological Sciences, QUB• Dr Clodagh Harris, Senior Lecturer at the
Department of Government and Politics, UCC
and an affiliate of the Environmental ResearchInstitute
The EAG met formally on 10 occasions between
May 2022 and January 2023 and collaborated
regularly throughout that time via email. They
attended meetings of the Assembly and provided
valuable advice and input between and during
meetings.

2.5.4 Rules and Procedures

The following rules and procedures were agreed
at the inaugural meeting, with a small numberof changes agreed during the course of theAssembly’s work programme.
Timing and frequency of meetings
Meetings of the Assembly will generally takeplace in designated venues in the Dublin area
during 2022. Full details of the proposed dates
for these meetings will be supplied to members
and will be available on www.citizensassembly.ie.

39

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Attendance of meetings
It is very important that members are available
to attend all weekends to ensure all citizens
have the same information and can participate
in the discussions which will influence the final
conclusions of the Assembly. Because of this, amember who misses more than one weekend
meeting will have to leave the process, unlessthere are extenuating circumstances. A panelof substitutes will be selected who may replace
members who have to leave the process.
Table 6: Attendance at Meetings as a Percentageof Assembly Membership
Date

Attendance

14 May 2022

76%

11 June (Fieldtrip) 2022

69%

24-25 September 2022

86%

15-16 October 2022

87%

5-6 November 2022

93%

26-27 November 2022

100%

21 January 2023

80%

Use of mobile devices
Assembly members are asked not to use mobile
devices during roundtable discussions but areencouraged to take photographs and post onsocial media.
Transparency of meetings
Members of the public will not have access to themeeting venue but will be able to view the plenary
sessions streamed live at www.citizensassembly.
ie. Round-table discussions will not be live
streamed.
Press, communications and members’interaction with the media
Accredited members of the media shall bepermitted to attend plenary sessions of theAssembly, subject to such terms and conditions
as may be laid down by the Assembly. Membersof the media will not have access to privatesessions of the Assembly.
As a general principle, the Chairperson shall act

as spokesperson in relation to administrative orprocedural matters.
Unless requested by or agreed with the
Chairperson, members shall refrain from media
interviews or public commentary while theAssembly is actively considering a topic. This
shall also apply in respect of social media sites.
Protection of members’ privacy
To ensure the privacy of members, personal
details (including names) will be treatedin strictest confidence. Any individual ororganisation which attempts to contact amember to try to influence their views on aparticular topic will be automatically excluded
from taking part in the Assembly.
Speaking arrangements
The format and structure of speaking
arrangements shall be agreed in advanceand, as a general principle, all contributions bymembers should be brief, respectful and nonrepetitive. Any member wishing to speak should
indicate this to their Facilitator, who will inform the
Chairperson. In an effort to make most efficientuse of time in plenary session, members areencouraged to use the opportunity of roundtablediscussions to express their views, ask for factual
information if required and deliberate with one
another.
Tabling and circulation of papers
All documents for Assembly meetings shall bemade available to all Members of the Assembly
via e-mail. Alternative arrangements will be madefor those members who are not in a position toreceive e-mail.
VotingVotes, if required, shall be by secret ballot of themembers present. Votes shall be overseen by
the Chairperson, with the support of at least two
Members of the Assembly. The Chairperson will
only vote in the event of a tied vote.
Note: A large number of decisions on thewording and passing of recommendations werereached by a majority show of hands during
plenary sessions.

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Assembly members agreed to move the final
voting of remaining recommendations to online
to facilitate those who were not in a position toattend the additional, unscheduled meeting inJanuary 2023.
98% of members participated in the online voting
during the week of January 23rd – 30th.
Accessibility of services and information for
persons with disabilities
In line with the provisions in the Disability Act
2005 and the Code of Practice on Accessibilityof Public Services and Information Provided by
Public Bodies, the Assembly will ensure that
services and information will be accessible to allmembers including those with a disability in so far
as is practicable and appropriate.
It is noted that all Assembly members will beselected at random to represent the viewsof the people of Ireland and will be broadly
representative of society as reflected in the
Census.

Irish sign language translation will be provided forall plenary sessions of each meeting.
Observers
It is recognised that certain organisations /individuals such as advocacy groups, NGOS,
academics political parties, researchers andsocial partners may have a legitimate interestin being present at the meetings to observe
proceedings first-hand. However, there is limited
space for observers. Attendance will be forplenary sessions only and will be subject to an
application process governed by the Secretariat.
Review of procedures
The Chairperson shall consult with Members of
the Assembly and other interested parties andconduct such reviews of the procedures andadministration of the Assembly as she sees fit.
Early warning
Members are encouraged to signal any concerns
or difficulties to the Secretariat as early as
possible so they can be resolved quickly.

2.6 Evaluation of the Assembly Process
The Assembly members and secretariat were very grateful for the advice and support of Dr Clodagh
Harris, University College Cork, a renowned expert in deliberative democracy, during the design,planning and implementation phases of the Assembly process.
Following the submission of this report to the Houses of the Oireachtas, an independent expert,
external to the process, will conduct a separate evaluation of the work of the Assembly in its entirety.
Members of the Assembly were surveyed at every meeting in relation to information content, the work
programme, facilitation of roundtable discussions, the process, etc. The results of these surveys will beanalysed and published as part of the evaluation.

41

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The Programme423
3.1 Programme Design and Innovations
When the Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss was established, it was provided withcomprehensive Terms of Reference. These required members to develop, over a short timeframe,
a broad, deep and coherent understanding of the issues around biodiversity loss. This was no easytask given that the biodiversity emergency has both global and Irish perspectives and is a complex,
multifaceted issue that spans all sectors of the economy and society. In addition, addressing the issueof biodiversity loss involves multiple actors across the government system, NGOs, communities andindividuals.
The complexity and multifaceted nature of the situation presented a challenge to the Chair, Expert
Advisory Group and the Secretariat in considering the structure and content of the programme, as
well as potential speakers. The objective was to deliver a balanced, evidence-based and unbiased
programme that would allow the members to make informed and focused recommendations to theOireachtas on how to address biodiversity loss.
There were a number of innovations in the design of the programme of work introduced during thisAssembly.
Fieldtrip
Members went on a fieldtrip to three biodiversity sites in the Dublin area - the first time a Citizens’
Assembly had undertaken work outside of a specified meeting room. While such an outing might notsuit all subject matters, in this instance it provided first-hand experience of biodiversity and gave themembers an insight into the practical issues involved in managing biodiversity. In addition, it provided aunique, relaxed and immersive environment in which members could get to know each other.

Sectoral Approach
The Assembly agreed that it would generally follow a sectoral or landscape approach to considering
biodiversity loss in the context of the Terms of Reference. The benefit of this approach was that itallowed members to consider the very large issue of biodiversity within a conceptual framework.
Members may have already been intuitively familiar with this framework, given that much of existing
policy is already structured on it. Within this structure it was also agreed that other holistic and strategic
perspectives would be included.
The sectors were:• Protected Sites and Species• Agriculture• Forestry and Woodlands• Peatlands• Freshwater• Marine and Coastal environments• Urban and Built Environments

There were also sessions on:• Environmental Rights• Invasive Species• Industry• Energy Production• Biodiversity Education

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While climate change is a major driver of biodiversity loss, the Assembly agreed that as this was the
subject of a previous national Citizens’ Assembly in 2018 it would not be addressed in detail in thisprogramme.
The approach to each sector generally followed the same format. Each began with an introductoryhigh-level overview. This was followed by practitioners in each area speaking on various issues andresponses, including international perspectives.
Voices from the Sector
A key feature of the overall programme was the introduction of what became known as the ‘Voices’
section. This provided opportunities for representatives of various groups and stakeholders to present
to and speak with members. Each speaker was asked to present for five minutes, to be on hand toanswer questions during the round table discussions, and to participate in a formal question andanswer session.
These ‘Voices’ provided for diverse, disparate perspectives, while also adding to the depthof knowledge of the Assembly. These voices included farmers, community groups, anglers,
environmental NGOs, financial services experts and more. Over 30 of these voices were featured in
the Assembly and, while each was allotted a limited time, their contributions significantly informed themember’s final recommendations.

Videos from the community
There were two videos specifically produced for the Assembly. These provided a change of pace forthe members and allowed for a lot of information to be presented by a variety of people in a shortperiod of time. These are available to view on the Citizens’ Assembly website7.
Cultural interludes
Throughout the meetings of the Assembly, cultural interludes were chosen to complement thework of the Assembly and allow for some light relief away from concentrating on presentations
and discussions. These included short traditional music performances, a presentation on the deep
connection between the Irish language, mythology and nature, and a presentation on the historicalconnections between societal norms and nature in Brehon Law.

7

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBYLrZ9-7PA&ab_channel=Citizens%27Assembly44

3Contribution of Speakers
The scale of the subject matter and the Terms of Reference meant that the Biodiversity Assembly
heard from many different speakers. In fact, during the course of the Assembly there were 87 speakers
representing a wide variety of sectors and organisations:

Table 7: Profile of Speakers
23 from Non-Governmental Organisations
16 from Agriculture and Business
11 from State/Government agencies
10 speakers from universities
9 individuals
8 talks by members of the Expert AdvisoryGroup
6 Members of the Children and Young
Persons’ Assembly on Biodiversity
4 from Local Authorities

3.2 Programme Outline and Overview
The Irish Citizens’ Assembly deliberative process involves the provision to members of:• Information from academics, stakeholders and public submissions.
• Small group conversations, in the form of roundtable discussions, where members draw fromtheir own knowledge and experiences, reflect on the information they have been presented with,listen to fellow members and work together to draft questions, consider responses and suggested
solutions. A facilitator and note-taker are at each table to record all of the conversations.
• Question and answer sessions with presenters, based on members’ roundtable discussions.
Over the course of the Assembly there were 12 hours 50 minutes of presentations, 21 hours and 30
minutes of round table deliberations, 5 hours and 50 mintutes of questions and answer sessions, 9hours of plenary sessions and a 6 hours and 30 minute filedtrip.
Recommendations were drafted from the notes recorded from each table at each meeting. Based on a
proportional representation of ideas, these draft recommendations were refined, edited and re-draftedby members until there was a consensus on wording of recommendations to be voted on. Members
also had the opportunity to propose other recommendations at various stages of the process.

45

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The following section provides a general outline of the Assembly’s programme. Sections 4-9 provides
summaries of the Assembly meetings, providing a more detailed breakdown of the meeting.
All presentations are available for viewing on the Citizens’ Assembly website8 and provide a record of
the information provided at the Assembly meetings, in addition to all question-and-answer sessions
with speakers.
Given the nature of the subject, it should be noted there were many cross-cutting and overlapping
issues that were referenced or discussed on a number of different occasions by multiple speakers.  
For instance, by simply looking at the presentations in the Agriculture section you would not get a full
appreciation of the information that the members deliberated on, as agricultural issues featured in othersectors (e.g. freshwater, forestry and woodlands, enforcement etc.)
It should also be noted that many of the issues that led to overarching recommendations were often
based on information that was presented by more than one speaker and across sectors.

8

https://www.citizensassembly.ie/en/assembly-on-biodiversity-loss/meetings/

46

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3.3 Inaugural Meeting of the Citizens’ Assemblies
There was an ‘Inaugural Meeting of the Citizens’
Assemblies’ for both Biodiversity Loss and a
Directly Elected Mayor for Dublin, which was live
streamed from Dublin Castle on 9 April 2022.
The meeting included an address from TaoiseachMicheál Martin, T.D., a short address from thetwo Chairs, Dr Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin and Jim
Gavin, and a talk by Dr Clodagh Harris, UCC, on“What is deliberative democracy and why is it
important”.

3.4 First Meeting 14 May 2022
The first ‘in person’ meeting of the Assembly introduced members to the general subject of biodiversity
and biodiversity loss. It provided an outline of the causes of the problem on a global scale and informed
members about Ireland’s terrestrial and marine biodiversity. It also addressed the issues of why
biodiversity is important both on a general and societal level as well as a personal one.

47

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3.5 Fieldtrip 11 June 2022
“I had already appreciated that biodiversity
is incredibly important. But the Citizens’
Assembly Fieldtrip was both inspiring andinformative, and left me feeling I wanted tolearn all I can about the problem, so that I
can be part of the solution.”“There are a lot of good independent
initiatives out there, but there appears to
be little in the way of joined-up thinking,cross organisation information sharing or
clarity about overall responsibility and notenough qualified people being employednationwide.”“Protecting and enhancing biodiversity
is key in any environment, including inbusiness and industrial spaces. No matter
what the context, there must be a place forbiodiversity. It needs a partnership approach
between business and science, between
corporate leadership and environmentalorganisations.”“Turvey is a beautiful public amenity thatshows what can be done with a relatively
small investment and a partnership between
the local community, environmental agencies
and local authorities. Nature can recoverquickly once you let it. But it’s not enoughto identify the problem and say things need
to be done - someone to take responsibility
for managing biodiversity.”“Bull Island is an amazing facility in theheart of our Capital City, and we need toprotect it. It gives a fascinating picture of
the interdependence between nature andhumankind, and how strategic interventions
can work to enhance biodiversity. Everythingaround us has value if we stop to look andappreciate.”

Quotes from members’ feedback on the field trip, 11 June 2022. The fieldtrip involved visits to threedifferent biodiversity sites looking at the approaches to managing biodiversity in a public park (Turvey
Nature Reserve), a protected site (North Bull Island) and an industrial landscape (Dublin Port).
48

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3.6 Second Meeting 24-25 September 2022
This was the first of the substantive meetings, which took place over the course of two days. This
meeting further developed the members’ understanding of biodiversity concepts and the causes of
biodiversity decline, including climate change. Information was provided to members about our EU andinternational obligations, as well as how biodiversity is managed in Ireland.
Members were given an overview of Ireland’s protected sites and species and the practical side of
implementing, monitoring and enforcing biodiversity legislation and policies. Given that the members’
recommendations were likely to have some fiscal impact, they were provided with contrasting
perspectives on national/governmental economics.

3.7 Third Meeting 15-16 October 2022
This was the first sectoral meeting, which covered Agriculture, Forestry and Woodlands, andPeatlands. As it involved people’s relationship with the land, it began with an historical perspective on
Brehon Law and the traditional relationships people have had with the land.
The first and most substantive sector considered by the Assembly was Agriculture Landscapes.
As agricultural activities cover three quarters of the land mass of Ireland, it was allocated the largest
amount of time. It began with a general introduction to agriculture and biodiversity and an outline ofcurrent policies, programmes and practices. This was followed by two ‘Voices’ sections. These weremade up by nominees of 8 farming organisations. Each was allotted the same amount of time topresent on what they are doing for biodiversity and what challenges they face in considering this issue.
Following this section, an international speaker outlined a picture of global agriculture and biodiversity
and Ireland’s position in this. Subsequently, the members listened to a case study of how to engage
with and motivate farmers to reverse biodiversity loss.
The Woodlands and Forestry section began with an overview of the national situation andpresentations by the state body responsible for forestry. This was followed by a video that looked atthree contrasting experiences and perspectives – a rewilding project, a Sitka spruce plantation owner
and an urban forest. The people featured in the video were also present to speak to the members andanswer questions.
The final sector was Peatlands, which consisted of an overview of peatlands and biodiversity andvoices from the peatland stakeholders’ community. An organisation representing people wishing tocontinue turf-cutting were approached and encouraged, through ongoing conversations,49

3
to present to the Assembly, but they declined. Recognising the need to ensure diverse perspectives
were included in the discussions, one of the speaker in the ‘Voices’ section, a former turf cutter, waspermitted additional time to broaden the members understanding of this issue.
Given the members’ articulated interest in and questions around the issue of environmental rights, aswell as the content of a number of submissions received by the Assembly, there was a presentation on
Environmental Justice and Rights of Nature.

3.8 Fourth Meeting 5-6 November 2022
The second sectoral meeting discussed Freshwater, Marine and Coastal Environments and Urban and
Built Environments.
The Freshwater section began with a presentation on water quality and biodiversity pressure in
Ireland’s freshwaters (rivers, lakes, etc.). This was followed by two presentations on issues andchallenges in freshwater catchments and local catchment assessment in Ireland, with potential actions
to reverse decline. There was then a ‘Voices’ section, with four speakers giving varied perspectives on
the condition and management of Ireland’s freshwater.
This was followed by talks on freshwater and other invasive species and how to protect and restore
freshwater fish.
The Marine and Coastal Environment section followed a similar format, with a high-level overview, ascientific perspective on biodiversity in our ocean and a three-person ‘Voices’ section.
This meeting also included a section on Energy Production, which looked at both the positive impact
on biodiversity of renewable energy on land and sea and the potential conflicts arising from renewableenergy projects in sensitive biodiversity areas.

50

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The final section of the meeting focused on the Urban and Built Environment. This section comprisedof a high-level overview, a talk on nature-based solutions in urban environments, and a presentation
about the Dutch city of Utrecht and its projects and plans to incorporate biodiversity in an urban
environment. A ‘Voices’ section was also included on this sector.
There were two other presentations at this meeting. Six members of the Children and Young People’s
Assembly on Biodiversity Loss, which was held separately to and independent of this national Citizens’
Assembly, presented their recommendations and outlined their experiences. The members also heard
a cultural presentation on the Irish language, mythology and sustainable living.

3.9 Fifth Meeting 26-27 November 2022
The first part of this meeting concluded the programme of the Assembly.  It began with a reminder ofthe value and importance of biodiversity. This was followed by a session on industry and biodiversity,
which began with an outline of what industry is currently doing and how they can better engage
with biodiversity. In the ‘Voices’ section there were four contributors from finance, food, tourism andbusiness.
There was a presentation on the current status of and potential for biodiversity in the education system.
Similar to the way it began, the Assembly’s programme ended with an international speaker looking
at the global issue of biodiversity and at the role that individuals can play in addressing the Biodiversity
Crisis.
This completed the programme of speakers for the Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss.
Members began deliberating on the entirety of recommendations to come from the Assembly. As there
was not sufficient time to thoroughly discuss all draft recommendations within this meeting, members
voted to hold an additional, unscheduled meeting during January 2023.

51

33.10 Sixth Meeting 21 January 2023
This meeting acted as a continuation of the fifth meeting, where members continued their deliberations
and discussions of the recommendations. The meeting focused on recommendations that had notbeen discussed and re-drafted as an Assembly.
Prior to this meeting, members had agreed that voting on the finalised wording would take place bysecret ballot online, similar to the process undertaken with the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality.
Once finalised wording had been agreed, this formed the bases of the e-voting which members,
excluding the Chair, voted on (98% participation), during 23 - 30 January 2023.

52

Part II: Summary of Assembly Meetings Content

53

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Summary Content of
Meeting 1:
14 May 2022

54

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The following is a summary of the meeting held on the 14 May 2022; a video record of themeeting, including presentations, plenary sessions and Q&A, is available on the Assembly’s
website at:https://citizensassembly.ie/citizens-assembly-on-biodiversity-loss/meetings/14thmay-2022/

4.1 Biodiversity: What it is, why we should care and how we should respond						
Sir Robert Watson

The meeting began with a video talkby Sir Robert Watson, former chair ofIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change,
former Chair of the Intergovernmental Platform
on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services andco-chair of two United Kingdom Assessments on
Biodiversity.
Prof. Watson outlined the global biodiversity
perspective, the provisioning services provided
by biodiversity i.e. food, water, energy, regulationof climate and water, control of pollution, as wellas aesthetic values. He outlined the scale of
the reconfiguration of the biosphere by humanactivities, with humans having transformed 75%of the ice-free land mass and disturbed 66% of
the Earth’s oceans while 85% of wetlands andpeatlands have been lost. By 2050, it is projectedthat only 10% of the earth will be in a near naturalstate and in the next 100-150 years, 13% of all
species will be threatened with extinction.
He outlined the five main drivers of thisbiodiversity loss:
1. Land use change – particularly caused byagriculture
2. Exploitation of our ecosystems
3. Pollution
4. Invasive/Alien species
5. Climate ChangeProf. Watson stated that, currently, the main
drivers of biodiversity decline are land usechange and exploitation. Climate change could
become the main driver of biodiversity loss in the
coming decades if sufficient action is not taken.
Climate and biodiversity are strongly coupled andneed to be dealt with together.

Prof. Watson outlined that both climate change
and biodiversity loss are not simply environmental
issues, they are also developmental ones
affecting food, energy and water security, as wellas human health. It is also an equity issue, as theconsequences of biodiversity loss are not equallyshared. Biodiversity has ‘non-market value’ inregulating climate change, pollution and flood
control. The loss of biodiversity means less food,less clean water.
Prof. Watson also stated that the loss of
biodiversity is also a moral issue. He asked:‘Do we humans have the right to destroy nature?’
He stated that addressing the drivers of
biodiversity loss requires government, private 55
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sector, financial services sector and the generalpublic working together to transform economic,
financial and productive systems. We needto take the value of nature into account whenmeasuring sustainability. Many governments
currently subsidise unsustainable agriculture,mining, forestry and fishing. We need to use thatmoney to subsidise sustainable practices.
Prof. Watson concluded by stating thatbiodiversity is central to human well-being, but
we are destroying it and, therefore, undermining
our own future.

4.2 Introduction to Biodiversity in IrelandThis is Ireland Video, produced by Across the LineThe members were shown a three-minute video illustrating Ireland’s diverse and beautiful wildlife9.

4.3 Ireland’s Land Biodiversity
Dr Ferdia Marnell,
Head of Animal Ecology, National Parks andWildlife Service
Dr Marnell gave a high-level sweeping account of
Ireland’s diverse land biodiversity.
He began by telling the members that Ireland’s
biodiversity is a unique product of our geography,
history and climate. There’s no other country withthe same biodiversity as Ireland and it comprises
around 30,000 individual species.
Dr Marnell told the members that 2,000 years
ago much of Ireland was covered in native
forest. However, when humans arrived it began
to change. Today 65% of our landscape isagricultural and 10% intensive forestry. Therefore,
75% of our landscape is relatively intensively
managed. Most of our biodiversity is in the other25%.
Dr Marnell gave an outline of the many species
associated with 5 types of habitats that make up
most of that 25%. These are peatlands, natural
woodlands, limestone pavements and turloughs,
and freshwater and coastal landscapes.
9

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rk8VibKA4Ws

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4.4 Ireland’s Marine Biodiversity
Prof. Tasman Crowe, University College
Dublin (member of the EAG)
Prof. Crowe told the members that many people
do not think of the marine environment when
thinking about Ireland. However, Ireland is an
island nation with 90% of its territory being
underwater. The maritime area of Ireland is
7-10 times more extensive than the land area
(depending on the measuring criteria). It extends
from the shore to the ocean, which reaches
4.5km in depth and is fully interconnectedwith the seas around us. Prof. Crowe told themembers that our marine biodiversity, which
exists largely out of sight in our seas, has moredifferent kinds of species than our terrestrial
environment.
Prof. Crowe outlined Ireland’s marine biodiversity
from phytoplankton, tiny animal species,
seaweed, invertebrates, to 400 different speciesof fish, sharks, whales and a wide variety ofseabirds.

4.5 What does Biodiversity do for us in Ireland?
Prof. Jane Stout, Professor in Botany, TCD
Prof. Stout began by providing some context for the members. She explained that most of the diversityof life on earth precedes humans. If the whole of history of life was condensed into 24-hour clock,humans would arrive at 2 minutes to midnight. However, humanity has had a massive impact on
biodiversity.
She told members that the breakdown in the relationship between humanity and the natural world
puts us at risk. It is important that when discussing biodiversity to remember it is not all about us.
Biodiversity also has intrinsic value.
574Prof. Stout addressed the members on a number of key areas telling members:• Biodiversity is fundamental to human existence. It is our life support system, which allows us tosurvive by protecting us from the elements and provide food and water. Biodiversity is essentiallyregulating our environment. For example, bogs regulate water and climate, store carbon, provide
valuable habitats, and maintain healthy soils to produce crops. This in turn supports pollinators in
the production of fruits and vegetables, as well as regulating the water cycle.
• Biodiversity provides direct and indirect contribution to human health. Biodiversity provides us
with medicines and medical cures for diseases. Biodiversity is also important to our well-being andmental health.
• Biodiversity provides goods and services on which we depend. We are part of nature and it isfundamental to us.
• To some people biodiversity is sacred and has a moral worth. Many others care about the creaturesand ecosystems with which we share our planet.

4.6 Look at Nature Around You
Ella McSweeney, Broadcaster, RTÉ
Ms McSweeney spoke to the members about people’s individual relationships with nature and theimportance of these relationships.
She told the members that biodiversity is the life around us, the life with which we share this island.
She reminded members to think about the life we have lost and the life that needs our help. Older
people have a sense of a much higher nature baseline than we do today. Where has the life gone?
Nature is slipping away from us at an alarming rate.
Ms McSweeney encouraged members to notice the nature around them, to engage with nature, tocreate a nature table in their minds. When one notices nature, it is almost impossible not to feel emotions.
Her talk was illustrated and provided with audio giving a number of examples of transformative
personal experiences with nature: a murmuration of starlings, hearing the voices of hump backed
whales, creating new habitat for the curlew (a species which has declined 98% in Ireland in the last
30 years) and swifts (which have declined by 40% in the last 15 years).
She concluded her talk by telling members that humans have garnered a disproportionate amount of
power and need to hear the call of nature. We are lucky that nature is so resilient. But we must open
our arms in welcome to nature before it is too late.
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Fieldtrip:
11 June 2022

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The field trip consisted of visits to three sites in the Dublin area where biodiversity is being managed invery different environments.

5.1 Turvey Nature Park
Kevin Halpenny, Senior Parks Superintendent, and Hans Visser, Biodiversity Officer,
Fingal County Council.
Mr Halpenny and Mr Visser introduced members to the role that a local authority plays in biodiversity
conservation.
Members were told that Turvey Park is owned by Fingal County Council and forms part of the Council’s
Green Infrastructure. The park is planned and managed as a nature park and includes natural andsemi-natural areas and other green spaces - both terrestrial and coastal marine. There are other areasthat have been identified as potential sites for further enhancement of biodiversity.
The council is assembling open spaces over time to form integrated green infrastructure linking various
habitats to form a nature network. Their draft development plan seeks to achieve “multi-functionality”
through active buy-in of the various vested interest sectors i.e. those involved in agricultural production,planning for housing, etc.
They stated that the national scale of biodiversity expenditure should be a lot more than current levels
and highlighted that Mr Visser was the only Biodiversity Officer in Fingal County Council.
The members were shown reclaimed wetlands and other interventions that support biodiversity.

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5.2 Dublin Port

5.3 North Bull Island

Eamonn O’Reilly, Chief Executive, Eamon
McElroy, Port Engineer and Lar Joye,
Heritage Officer.

Aoife Delaney, NPWS Coastal andMonitoring Expert, Dr Rebecca Jeffrey,
NPWS Science and Biodiversity Unit, andSinead Delaney, NPWS Birds Expert.

Dublin Port is Ireland’s largest port, one of themost heavily industrialised sites in the city andalso an important area for nature. It is a Natura
2000 site and management told members thatthey take that role very seriously.
The Dublin Port Masterplan assesses thecapacity of the Port to handle the level of traffic
envisaged into the long-term future and an
integral part of the plan is to address impacts onnature.
Members were told that the availability ofadaptive civil engineering expertise was helpful
to devising of nature conservation measures,
as per Dublin Port’s construction of customised
pontoons to protect the bird tern colony in cooperation with BirdWatch Ireland. Dublin Port
has recently started bird conservation projects to
inform how best they can sensitively redevelop
its seawalls and minimise impact on nature in the
future. The necessity for a robust research base
was highlighted as an essential pre-requisite
and the importance of scientific measurement
was emphasised. Dublin Port has been building
collaborations with research institutions on how
to deploy nature to mutual benefit, such as in thedevising of specialist wall tiles suitable to provide
a habitat for water-cleansing limpets.
Every project has to be thoroughly examinedfrom an environmental point of view, in tandemwith Dublin Port’s economic remits. Members
were told that they take their nature conservation
work seriously, not because they have to but
because they want to. Members were driven andwalked through part of the port during which they
were shown features of the port and engaged inquestions and answers with staff.

North Bull Island is owned by Dublin City Council.
It is an internationally important designated siteand part of the Natura 2000 network. The staffof the National Parks and Wildlife Service began
the visit with an outline of the administrative
structure of the NPWS and an introduction to itsrole regarding the national network of protectedsites and species designated under the Birds andHabitats Directives, which are collectively known
as the Natura 2000 Network.
The habitat at Bull Island is part of a series ofinterlinking habitats stretching all the way to
Dundalk in the north, to the Dublin Mountains
in the south and includes all of Dublin Bay.
Members were told about the importance ofsand dunes for ecosystem services, including
acting as protective barriers to flooding fornearby residences. Preventive measures toprotect the sand dunes are essential, but there isan ongoing challenge of educating the public as
to their conservation importance. Sand dunes arehome to over 1,000 vascular plants and about
350 of these can be found at Bull Island. Invasiveplants are, however, bringing unwelcome stability
to sand dunes and need eradication.
At the end of the visit the members were brought
to the more sheltered inter-tidal areas of the salt
marsh, which provides a safe foraging site forwinter wading foraging birds. A threat to thisvital food source comes from humans who are
exploiting the same food source. Salt marshes
are important carbon sinks and this dimension
gives extra reason for such sites to be especiallywell managed.

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Summary Content of
Meeting 2:
24-25 September 2022

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The following is a summary of the meeting held on the weekend of 24-25 September 2022; avideo record of the meeting, including presentations, plenary sessions and Q&A, is available
on the Assembly’s website at:https://citizensassembly.ie/citizens-assembly-on-biodiversity-loss/meetings/24th25th-september-2022/

6.1 How to be a Good Ancestor						Dr Roman Krznaric, Author and Public Philosopher
Dr Krznaric told members that the biodiversity emergency is a long-term issue that requires longterm thinking. Decisions made now will have impacts for generations to come. How can we be goodancestors for those generations?

Dr Krznaric cited long term thinkers who built cathedrals, the members of the Future Design movementin Japan and the seventh generation thinking of Iroquois native Americans as practical examples oflong-term thinking.
He carried out a thought exercise with members to demonstrate the impact of long-term thinking andto have them think about the kind of legacy we want to leave.

6.2 Video showing the work of the Children and Young People’s
Assembly on Biodiversity Loss					In September 2022, Ireland held its first Children and Young People’s Assembly on Biodiversity Loss10.
Members of this Assembly would attend a later meeting of the Citizens’ Assembly to present theirrecommendations.
10

https://www.citizensassembly.ie/en/assembly-on-biodiversity-loss/meetings/

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6.3 Biodiversity Loss in Ireland
6.3.1 Ecology – A Brief Introduction to
Ecological Concepts and Main Threats
Prof. Tasman Crowe, UCD, with support
from Prof. Jennifer McElwaine, TCD, and Dr
James Moran, ATU (all members of the EAG).
Prof. Crowe described his talk as ‘Ecology 101’,
revisiting and expanding on the five big threats tobiodiversity - habitat loss, exploitation, pollution,
climate change and invasive species - andintroducing ecological concepts giving context tothose threats.
The loss of biodiversity is a gradual and localised.
In Ireland:• 85% of protected habitats in Ireland are inunfavourable condition.
• 20% of breeding birds in Ireland are in longdecline.
• birds that overwinter in Ireland are down by
50% since 1990s.
• endemic species that are only found in Ireland
are of particular concern.

are on. Sufficient ecological knowledge exists
to address the crisis, but political will andshortcomings in the design and implementationof policy limits impactful action.

6.3.2 Climate Change Policy and Biodiversity
Laura Burke, Director General,
Environmental Protection Agency
Ms Burke described climate change as thedefining challenge of the century. Caused byhumans, it is altering ecosystems, causing
species loss and mass mortality events of plants
and animals around the world.
Currently, the main pressures on Ireland’s
protected habitats are agriculture and other land
use changes such as extraction of resources,
forestry, urbanisation, recreation and invasive
species. By the end of the century climatechange is set to become the most significant
driver of biodiversity loss.

Prof. Crowe explained species decline byoutlining the various stages of life history andthreats, using the threatened Natterjack Toad as
an example. He also introduced the concept ofresilience – the ability of species and habitats towithstand and recover from threats.

Ms Burke provided an overview of the many
areas of climate change governance. Despite
having all of these policies in place, the trends
are going in the wrong direction. She outlined
an intention-action gap, as targets are missed
due to delayed actions as well as shortfalls inreporting by organising bodies.

Prof. Crowe likened the vulnerability of
ecosystems to an airplane held together by many
rivets. If you lose enough rivets or key rivets, theairplane will crash. He stated that the scientificevidence is clear that that is the trajectory we

Ms Burke outlined many co-benefits between
climate change and biodiversity actions but also
highlighted potential for conflict. She concluded
that there is a lot happening, but delivery is still achallenge.

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6.4 Biodiversity Loss: Some of the Evidence
Dr Liam Lysaght, Director National
Biodiversity Data Centre.
Dr Lysaght told the members that humanity is
at a crossroads with regard to the legacy we areleaving to future generations. Globally we are notdoing nearly enough.
In Ireland the most important measure is the
Habitats Directive. However, even habitats
and species afforded the strictest protection
under the directive are deteriorating. 85% of
the protected habitats are still in unfavourable
conservation status. There is a similar trend forprotected species, and he cited a number ofexamples.
He told the members that we do not know much about the vast majority of species, such as insects,
microbes and pollinators, that support the functioning of ecosystem services. There is a serious
information deficit, and we only have information about the tip of the iceberg. This is a concern.
Dr Lysaght explained that we are faced with leaving a sad legacy. Biodiversity loss is real. It is declining
despite the policies in place. We should not set our ambition to retain what we have, but think about
how we get back to the biodiversity that was here 100 years ago.

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6.5 Ireland’s EU and International Obligations					Dr Mícheál Ó Briain
Dr Ó Briain outlined the development of international biodiversity policy. He particularly emphasised theimportance of the EU Birds and Habitats Directives, which set out to restore and maintain habitats in ahealthy state. These set out four pillars:
1. Ensure most valuable sites are protected as Natura 2000 sites.
2. Manage and restore land beyond Natura 2000 sites.
3. Ensure protection and sustainable use of species.
4. Ensure adequate, knowledge, data availability and awareness.
Dr Ó Briain stated that Ireland has a poor implementation record on EU nature legislation, with delays,
rulings against Ireland by the Court of Justice, ongoing legal actions (particularly regarding peatlands)
and one of the poorest records in designating marine protected areas.
Dr Ó Briain outlined the key measures required to implement EU legislation. He told the members that
we have not reached our targets, because we have neither the mechanisms nor the human, financial
and engagement commitments to deliver them. If legislation is fully implemented, we would be wellon the road to recovery. He later asked members what it would mean if Ireland considered its bogs asvaluable as the Book of Kells.

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6.6 Mapping Biodiversity Governance in Ireland
Dr Mary Dobbs, School of Law and Criminology, NUI, Maynooth, Member of the EAG
Dr Dobbs presented background information on
overarching biodiversity governance in Ireland toallow members to consider potential changes.
She outlined a complex and interdependent areathat involves laws, policies and actors operating
at national, local and individual levels.
Dr Dobbs outlined international and national
biodiversity laws, as well as laws in other related
fields such as agriculture, forestry, planning,fisheries, administrative law, human rights andtrade.
There are 7 government departments and 23 public bodies or groups with biodiversity responsibilities.
There are also NGOs, community groups and individuals. There is under-resourcing, lack of coherency,
conflicts of interest and complexity.
Dr Dobbs outlined various governance tools that are available and said members could consider what
approach, or combination of approaches, would work best in various areas. Alternatively, they mightlook at other options such as general environmental laws or environmental rights.

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6.7 Communities Video
There are hundreds of different community and voluntary groups throughout the country doing workthat is related to biodiversity conservation. The members were shown a 15-minute video11 produced
for the Assembly featuring Seán Carolan, The Old Irish Goat Society, Maria O’Connor, Friends of theCamac River, Denis Goggin, the Corrib Beo Partnership, Cormac McCarthy for the Ennis Tidy Towns
Group, Alan Moore of Hedgerows Ireland and Paul Handrick of the Bee Sanctuary of Ireland. Eachoutlined what they are doing, why are they doing it and what are their challenges.

6.8 Ireland’s Biodiversity NGOs – Irish Environmental Network (IEN)
There is a large NGO community in Ireland working in the area of biodiversity. Three members of the
IEN spoke to the Assembly about their work and challenges.
Padraic Fogarty, Campaign Officer, Irish Wildlife Trust (IWT)
Irish Wildlife Trust was set up in 1979 to address the biodiversity crisis. A lot of today’s problems were
known in the 1970s and 1980s. Most people working in this space are volunteers. Their work isdivided into education, which is essential to address the crisis, and advocacy for change. Mr Fogarty
told the Assembly that the solutions are known. The IWT holds the government and state to accountfor the many commitments they have made on our behalf. We should increase ambition in line withthe science. Mr Fogarty said the IWT have not yet succeeded in communicating with people andinfluencing government but will continue to do what they do until the biodiversity crisis is solved.

11

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBYLrZ9-7PA&ab_channel=Citizens%27Assembly70

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Dr Elaine McGoff, Natural Environment Officer, An Taisce
An Taisce has two main branches. The education area has ring-fenced government funding for Clean
Coast, Blue Flag Beaches and Green Schools initiatives. The advocacy unit, which she talked mainly
about, operates on a shoestring and gets no government funding.
Planning is a key lever for biodiversity protection. An Taisce is the only independent environmental NGO
in Ireland to have prescribed consultee status under the planning acts. She said An Taisce acts like anenvironmental watchdog. An Taisce are not asking the state to do anything new, just implement what
they are legally obliged to. If planning, licensing and policy were in compliance with EU law, An Taisce
would not be needed, and the natural world would be in a much better position. However, the State is
the biggest transgressor of EU law.
The main challenge is lack of funding, with a fundamental mismatch between the expertise required
and the level of funding, while NGOs are also up against very well-funded organisations with politicalconnections.
Karin Dubsky, Co-founder and Coordinator of Coastwatch Europe
Ms Dubsky began by showing some coastal species collected in Cahore, County Wexford, and in
Malahide, County Dublin.
She told the members that we cannot afford to lose more biodiversity. She described Coastwatch’s
education work and their core team of volunteers, scientists, lawyers and people on the ground. She
said there’s no way officials can look after 7,500kms of shore. All of us have a responsibility to lookafter it. When people know how special something is they become motivated to look after it and when
they restore and protect it, it brings joy and confidence. She told the Assembly that clarity on who is
responsible for what is required, because lack of clarity causes biodiversity loss. She concluded bynoting the new maritime spatial planning law and urged the commencement of the parts relating to theforeshore.

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6.9 Nature Designation and Protection in Ireland
Dr Andy Bleasdale, Scientific Advice and Research, NPWSDr Bleasdale outlined the roles of the National Parks and Wildlife Service. Dr Bleasdale provided
members with an update on the development of the 4th National Biodiversity Action Plan, thepublication of which will be timed to ensure the recommendations of the Citizens’ Assembly arecaptured.
Dr Bleasdale told the Assembly that there are two main nature designations in Ireland which form the
Natura 2000 Network, covering 13% of national land area:
1. Habitats Directive - Designated best sites for protection of suites of habitats and species as Special
Areas of Conservation (SAC). There are 439 SACs in Ireland for 59 habitats and 29 species. The
objective of the NPWS is to maintain and restore conservation status as well as monitor and reportto the European Commission.
2. Birds Directive – All birds require protection and the NPWS designate Special Protection Areas(SPAs) for birds. There are 154 SPAs in Ireland.

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Dr Bleasdale explained the process by which the NPWS reports to Europe, highlighting pressures andthreats to the protected sites and species. He told the Assembly that these reports should prompt
action by the State, but sometimes this can be missing.
Dr Bleasdale provided members with some of the latest information, much of which is not good:• Only 15% of habitats are in good status and only 2% are improving.
• 57% of species are in good status. 13% improving.
• The last 12 years has seen a 38% decrease of bird populations.
The pressure and threats driving this include agriculture, development, water pollution, forestry – thewrong tree in the wrong place damages biodiversity – and extraction of resources that damages
protected sites and species, and invasive species.
He outlined that there are conservation objectives set for each site. However, just setting theconservation objectives does not provide the means by which we meet them. Acting to meet theseobjects is the missing link in protecting these sites and species.

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6.10 The Practical Side of Implementing, Monitoring and Enforcing
Shirley Clerkin, Heritage Officer, Monaghan County Council
Ms Clerkin outlined the wide ranging and challenging work of local authority Heritage Officers. She told
members of the complex factors leading to biodiversity loss. This loss is incremental, progressive andoften goes unnoticed.
She illustrated this with two examples showing the decline of important habitats in County Monaghan.
Hedgerows provide important functions for nature, but County Monaghan surveys in 2010 and2020 showed a 9% decline in the extent of hedgerows as well as a decline in the quality of remaining
hedgerows. There are 714 wetlands in Monaghan. Between 2000 and 2006 wetlands declined by
10%. They are being infilled and drained, with a resulting loss in ecosystem services.
Ms. Clerkin told members that there’s huge confusion on the ground about what and where is
protected. It is very unclear who is responsible for ensuring which legislation is enforced. Who should
one call when there is a problem?
She asked the Assembly: Does nature have an intrinsic right to survive? She observed that she works
in a planning system, but there are no guidelines on how to implement or integrate biodiversity properly.
She asked: What about incentivising positive nature actions? She concluded that people oncecelebrated the abundance of nature, today we are crying for its loss.

6.11 Resourcing the State’s response to Biodiversity Loss
6.11.1 How Our National Budget Policy Works
Dr Eddie Casey, Chief Economist, Irish Fiscal Advisory Council
Dr Casey outlined the factors that combine to produce budgetary policy. He told the assembly thatgovernments are not like households, as they can borrow, run deficits and tax (within limits). He
outlined the concept of the debt ratio, when it becomes unsustainable and the effect this has oninterest rates.
Dr Casey outlined the evolution of fiscal rules. He stated there are clear trade-offs and no free lunches.
He outlined the current main pressures – aging population, overreliance on corporation tax, climatechange, Sláintecare and housing – and showed the small areas where taxes can be raised.
Dr Casey concluded by telling members that the budget is a complex interaction between different
stakeholders, rules, economic policies and competing demands. Governments are always firefighting.  
Will biodiversity ever be elevated to the top of the discussion?
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6.11.2 Doughnut Economics
Prof. Kate Raworth, economist, creator of the Doughnut of social and planetary boundaries,
and co-founder of Doughnut Economics Action Lab
Prof. Raworth presented the Doughnut as an economic concept for human prosperity. She outlinedthat our collective economic aim should be to leave no-one in the hole in the middle - leave no-one
falling short on the essentials of life – but also not to exceed the life supporting systems that we haveon earth. When we draw too much from our natural systems, it causes serious problems such as
biodiversity loss. We need to live within the boundaries of the doughnut, where people and planet can
thrive.
On a global scale humanity is way out of balance, massively overshooting pressure on the planet.
We need to find a balance we have never found before. She explained that the economy is a social
construct that was invented by humans and that human society is embedded in the living world anddependent on it.
She asked: How do we protect the foundations of life? We have inherited degenerative systems. This
needs to be turned around. We need to create regenerative systems. She presented a framework formembers to consider in addressing how to leave behind degenerative ways that lead to such issues as
biodiversity loss and create regenerative systems that will lead to biodiversity restoration.

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Summary Content of
Meeting 3:
15-16 October 2022

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The following is a summary of the meeting held on the weekend of 15-16 October 2022; avideo record of the meeting, including presentations, plenary sessions and Q&A, is available
on the Assembly’s website at:https://citizensassembly.ie/citizens-assembly-on-biodiversity-loss/meetings/15th16th-october-2022/

7.1 The Natural World in Early Ireland					Dr Elva Johnston, School of History, University College Dublin
Dr Johnston gave a historical perspective on the relationship between people who have lived on thisisland and nature.
Between the 5th and the 12th century Ireland had a highly rural society bound by rules and laws, witha complex legal system known as Brehon Law. These laws outlined how to manage land, rivers andcreatures on the land.
Dr Johnston explained that the place names we have today give insight into the use of land in thepast. The names we have today are a direct link with that – achad (pasture, field) clúain (meadow),mag (plain), crúach (hill), druim (ridge), slíab (mountain), daire (oak woodland), fid (wood), ros (wooded
promontory, height), loch (lake, inlet), inis (bog island, island), móin (bog).
Dr Johnston outlined the relationship between the people and the animals that inhabited thatlandscape including cattle, sheep, pigs, goats, fowl, horses, bees, dogs, cats, fish, wolves and birds.
Animals were not just there to be managed but also have personality and she outlined some of therelationships between animals and Irish mythology – e.g. The Children of Lir.

7.2 Agriculture
7.2.1 Agriculture and Biodiversity
Dr Helen Sheridan, School of Agriculture and Food Science, University College Dublin
Dr Sheridan gave an overview of the important agriculture sector:• 135,000 farms cover 68% of total land area.
• The vast majority of land area is grassland with a small amount of cereal.
• Beef, dairy and sheep account for 80% of agriculture.
• Agriculture employs 163,000 people and accounts for 9% of national exports.
Farm systems are a function of soils, drainage and rainfall. Dairy predominates in the drier south andsoutheast (dairy has a larger than average farm size – circa 65ha compared to an average 33ha), beef
is mainly in the border, midlands and west area (average farm size of 27ha), while sheep is mainly inthe west and more marginal land. The average dairy farm income is €74,000, while cattle rearing farms
have an average income of €9,000. Direct Payments through the Common Agricultural Policy accountfor about 28% of dairy income, but 157% of cattle rearing farm income and 105% of sheep farmincome.
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Biodiversity and its ecosystem services underpin
the agricultural system. Dr Sheridan brought
attention to the lack of knowledge about thesoil and how it is affected by different farming
systems. She highlighted the biodiversity valueof multi-species swards and the importance ofhedgerows.

policies. The challenge is now to deliver on thesepolicies for the benefit of the environment andpeople depending on it.

She told the members that on farms in nondesignated areas, semi-natural habitats accountfor an average of 13% of land. This compares
favourably internationally, although the quality ofhabitat is questionable e.g. half of hedgerows are
not in good condition.

CAP is the dominant budget for agriculture andthe environment, and therefore for biodiversity
conservation. 75% of all biodiversity expenditureis associated with agriculture. He outlined thecurrent CAP provisions in terms of baseline
requirements, as well as more enhanced andoptional schemes such as the ACRES schemes.
He also outlined European Innovative
Partnerships - locally led approaches with
farmers, scientists and advisors cooperating.

Dr Sheridan told the Assembly of the need to
manage and maintain biodiversity on goodfarming land. However, it is likely that high nature
value farmland will be found in the more marginal
farming areas of the west, north-west andmidlands. Good practice, especially by thosein financially vulnerable situations, needs to berecognised and rewarded.

Dr Ó hUallacháin concluded by saying thatnature conservation in Ireland is dependent on
the agriculture sector. It needs to be guided byeffective policy, implementation, monitoring,a recognition that one size does not fit all, theneed for more data (particularly soil biodiversity),effective knowledge transfer and greater policy
coherence.

7.2.2 Agricultural Biodiversity: Current
policies, programmes and practices
Dr Daire Ó hUallacháin, Senior Research
Officer in Ecology and Water Quality,
TeagascDr Ó hUallacháin gave an overview of Irish
agriculture and land use. Agriculture accounts
for 68% of our land area (EU average of 40%),
while 11% is forestry (EU average is 40%).
Highlighting the fact that we do not have anational landscape/habitat map means that, formost parts of the country, it is difficult to target or
measure biodiversity actions.
He outlined the need to balance economic,
societal and environmental concerns which will
be different for each type of farm system.
National and international sustainability policies
create a very complicated policy environment, inwhich biodiversity is just one objective. There areoften synergies but also trade-offs when policies
conflict, i.e. different policy timeframes anddiffering data underpinning policies.
While previous CAP policies had little positive
impact on biodiversity, there is increasing
integration of biodiversity and agricultural
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7.2.3 Voices from the Farming Sector
Eight farming organisations were invited to send a representative to address the Assembly on the
successes and challenges they experience when considering farming and biodiversity.

Macra na Feirme – Shane Fitzgerald
Mr Fitzgerald is a dairy farmer from Waterford,
whose farm is a participant in the Teagasc
Signpost Programme. He spoke about his
intensive dairy farm and how his family is
engaging with biodiversity. He explained thebenefits of increasing biodiversity on the farm– increasing wildlife, improving well-being,
and aesthetics as well as saving on the use ofpesticides.
He told the Assembly about schemes supporting
biodiversity on the farm and that farmers will
embrace these policies. But he emphasised
the need for baseline information about farmbiodiversity, the need for education and theimportance of engaging with young farmers.
Irish Farmers’ Association – Paul O’Brien
Mr O’Brien has been a sheep and tillage farmer
in Graignamanagh, Co. Kilkenny for 34 years. He
spoke about the system of extensive farming in
Ireland, where the average livestock farm has 69
cattle and the average dairy herd is 83 cows. He
told the members that just 42% of Irish farms arefinancially viable.

Fully funded environmental and biodiversity
schemes are needed but engagement with
farmers on these is important.
Irish Cattle and Milk Suppliers Association –Pat McCormack (President)
Mr McCormack is a County Tipperary dairy
farmer who supplies Tipperary Co-op with spring
calving herd. He is a commercial farmer with ayoung family.
Mr McCormack told the members thatengagement is key. Commercial farmers caninteract with nature and explained that we needto leave space for wildlife e.g. hedgerows, clover
coverage. He asked why should any farmer be
excluded from an environmental programme?
Because if everybody does something we
can achieve a lot. As an industry that is seen
as being harmful to the environment, they areincorporating new practices and his association
want to engage fully on this issue.

He outlined the national contributions farmers
have made to biodiversity: there is 12-14% spacefor nature on farms, 6,600 km of hedgerows havebeen planted on farms since 1994 and one thirdof farms are classified as high nature value.
Mr O’Brien told the members that there should
be increased ambition and opportunity forfarmers to take part in environmental schemes.
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Irish Organic Association – Stephen Meredith
Mr Meredith is an organic beef and tillage farmer, working with his father and brother near Ballylinan,
Co. Laois.
Mr Meredith outlined that organic farming optimises productivity without harming the environment.
Organic farmers look at farm biodiversity both above and below the ground. They try to strike balance
between getting good production and allowing nature to work for us. Soil biodiversity is key, but
biodiversity is important across the farm in, for example, ponds, native woodlands and hedgerows. All
farmers have to strike the balance between production and biodiversity management.
He told the members that costs related to biodiversity are not necessarily reflected in prices. Therefore,
policy incentives are important - public money for public goods is important. There are positive moves
in this area but it’s important that when farmers want to go further that they are appropriately paid forthese efforts.

Talamh Beo – Maurice Deasy
Mr Deasy is an arable and sheep farmer with his father in North Tipperary. He talked about theimportance of soil as ‘the skin of the earth’.
He outlined that our cheap food policy means fewer farmers, more machines, more risks for farmers
and smaller returns. It means less crop rotation, less market outlets, lower soil carbon, less soil healthand more specialisation in farming.
Describing his own farming practice he emphasised cover crops, crop rotation and reduced
tillage which increases biodiversity, reduces costs, improves soil health, soil carbon and carbon
sequestration. He is on a journey to get soil carbon up, which will take 5-10 years and will be done withno monetary reward.
He told the Assembly that soil is not dirt, it is microbiology. A teaspoon of soil has the same amountof microbes as there are people on the planet. Good soil health means healthy plants, healthy plantsmean healthy animals, healthy animals means healthy humans.

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Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association – Aideen McGloin
Ms McGloinn is a sheep and beef farmer in the
Ox Mountains, south Sligo.
Ms McGloin told members that the INHFA was
set up in response to a sense of alienation felt by
farmers on hill, designated and environmentallyvaluable land. They highlight challenges and workfor recognition of the environmental goods they
produce, in addition to food.
She told the members that farmers follow policy
and that they use policy to make changes in how
they approach nature. Farmers have removed
biodiversity because of policy and income.
The limited eligibility of biodiversity areas onfarms for payments has been disastrous. Agrienvironmental schemes are targeted at what aredescribed as the most appropriate areas but,
she asked, why is biodiversity not important in allareas?
She told the Assembly that farmers need longterm commitment. Farmers have no certainty ifrules change on a 5-year cycle. What is being
asked of them now is a huge sea change.
She told the Assembly that rules are imposed on
farmers, rather than developed in consultation
with them. As a result, farmers on designatedlands do not trust the policy makers.
She concluded by saying that interventions
should be designed with farmers, farmers shouldbe paid for the environmental goods they provide,
there should be long-term policy commitments
and farmers should be treated with respect.

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Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association– Dan Lynam
Mr Lynam has been a farmer for 55 years. He
farms 400 acres with his son in Westmeath.
Mr Lynam told the members that his family has
farmed this land for five generations. However,there has never been as great a challenge on
their farm than today due to the rules, regulations
and paperwork required, while costs spiral andprices are not predictable. Farmers are more andmore under direct attack from outside forces,
while they work harder and longer hours than any
other profession. This puts huge pressure on ayoung family such as his son’s.
He shared photographs of his farm showing awildflower garden, organic potatoes, birdboxes,
areas set aside for wild bird cover as well as
2km of hedgerows they have planted. In one
series of works he spent €10,000 on biodiversity
measures. Farmers, he said, do understandbiodiversity.
He told the members that the Department isbringing out new schemes with very little reward
for farmers and just 10% of farmers eligible forthe maximum amount of money. He told theAssembly that it (the environmental subsidy
scheme) is not working.
Irish Grain Growers – Pat Cleary
Mr Cleary farms 600 acres in Kildare with his two sons, the family’s 6th farming generation. They
started minimal cultivation on their farm in the 2000s.
Mr Cleary explained that grain growers represent a very small part of the agriculture sector and thatjust 6% of agriculture area is arable farm. But what they produce is significant. Arable farming has thelowest carbon footprint, enhances biodiversity and provides a diverse array of products. But there is alack of support and lack of awareness of the arable sector.
He outlined the decline of the arable sector in Ireland since the Second World War. Today there is360,000 ha of arable farming.
Mr Cleary told the Assembly that his farming practice is about getting the soil in good order forbiodiversity.  He explained his crop rotation and its benefits for biodiversity as well as reduction in
imports, nitrogen and pesticides.
He told the members that Ireland could double the amount of land under arable.

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7.2.4 What can we learn from other countries?
Prof. Lynn Dicks, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge
Prof. Dicks began with a few figures to show how important agriculture, and certain agriculture, is
globally:• 71% of the planet is habitable land.
• 50% of this habitable land is used for agriculture.
• 77% of this agricultural land is used by the livestock industry.
• 18% of human’s calorie intake comes from this 77% of agricultural land.
Globally the expansion of agriculture is the biggest driver of biodiversity loss. If we want to reverse
biodiversity loss and bring our biodiversity back to a thriving level we need to look at the foodproduction system.
She outlined that we need to do four things:
1. Stop expanding agriculture into natural habitats. Globally the main areas where agriculture isexpanding is south Brazil, west, east and parts of south Africa. This expansion can be the cause of
economic development, and these are difficult issues to address.
2. Produce food efficiently, on the smallest possible footprint.
3. Produce food in a way that does not degrade land.
4. Reduce land demand by changing our diet and reducing food waste (which accounts for up to 50%
of food produced).
Ireland has an impact on this global picture and is an integral part of it. We import 75% of our food anda large quantity of animal feed. Our biodiversity footprint is global and directly affects the areas losing
natural habitat in many parts of the world.
To address this we need to do two things:
1. Lessen the impact of farming on biodiversity.
2. Change our consumption patterns to consume less of the most damaging agricultural products.

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77.2.5 Engaging and motivating farmers to reverse biodiversity loss
Brendan Dunford, Manager of the Burren Programme and Founder of the Burrenbeo Trust
Mr Dunford told the assembly about the work in the Burren in Clare and Galway and the successes
over the last 25 years of working with farmers to conserve and restore biodiversity. He emphasised that
farmers can be the solution to biodiversity loss.
When asking farmers to do something other than produce food, they need to understand what it will
cost, who will pay, who will give them information and what will the neighbours think?
Mr Dunford told the Assembly that there were three parts to the success: incentives, information andheart. Incentives of €1.2 million per annum have been provided to farmers in the area. Farmers do
not respond to being told what to do but instead, having learned about biodiversity, they respond tobeing told what the result should be. Farmers were also provided with clear information, were helpedwith paperwork and participated in a variety of community projects. The final element of the work wasrecognising the identity and heart of the farmers as critical. As a result, the Burren is an exemplar of
how farming can work to improve biodiversity.
Mr Dunford also outlined the national Farming for Nature programme, which identifies, celebrates andsupports what he described as ‘conservation heroes’, and the Hare’s Corner project, which fundedsmall biodiversity projects throughout Clare.
He concluded that farmers have a critical role to play to address the biodiversity crisis and need to be
mobilised at scale. There is an appetite, but it needs to be addressed through the pocket, the head andthe heart and will come down to the question: how badly do we want it?

7.3 Forestry and Woodlands
7.3.1 Overview: Woodlands and Forestry – Biodiversity Loss and Recovery
Richard Nairn, Director Natura Trees, member of the Steering Committee of the
Woodlands of Ireland
Mr Nairn described his own small woodland in Wicklow, which has a huge range of biodiversity. A one
day ‘biodiversity blitz’ identified a huge number of trees, plants, ferns, mosses and liverworts, fungi,
moths, molluscs, freshwater invertebrates, birds and bats. The key contributory factor to this is the ageof the woodland and continuity both for the forest and the soil structure.

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Mr Nairn outlined woodlands in Ireland. 6,000 years ago 80% of Ireland was woodland. In 1922 it was
1%. Today, less than 2% is native broadleaf woodland which is highly fragmented across the landscape.
There are just 123 ancient or long-established woodlands left and many of these are in poor condition
due to invasive species and grazing, especially by deer. 9% of our land is currently commercial forestry
plantation.

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The main option for restoring woodlands is theNative Woodland Scheme, which is supported
by government grants. However, there is a low
take up due to the limited number of years that
finance is available. Only 500ha per annum arebeing grant aided under this scheme, with only
70% of the budget taken up.
One of the main problems for woodlands are
non-native deer which are not managed. There isno plan for dealing with them.
There is a 15% provision for broadleaf incommercial plantation schemes but that is notenough. There is also a need for continuous
cover forestry rather than short rotation.
Mr Nairn concluded that there was a newForestry Programme due to be announced andthat this may have positive new measures.

7.3.2 Coillte Forestry and Biodiversity
Mark Carlin, Managing Director of Forestry,
Coillte, with Dr Ciarán Fallon, Director of
Coillte Nature.
Mr Carlin told the members that Coillte manage
7% of our land or 440,000ha. This is 50% of all
the forests in Ireland. It is the largest producerof timber and wood, the largest provider ofrecreation area and has the largest habitats in the
country.
Coillte is looking to the long-term developmentof their land, aligning them with multiple UN
Sustainable Goals. This breaks down into fourmain objectives:• Forests for Climate• Forests for Nature• Forests for Wood
• Forests for People

The pressures faced include invasive species andwild deer, which is a problem that needs to beaddressed.
Mr Carlin outlined some projects being carriedout by Coillte Nature in the area of restoration,
regeneration, rehabilitation and afforestation.
He concluded that Coillte’s challenge is to strikethe right balance.

7.3.3 Woodlands and Forestry Video12
The members were shown a specially produced
video featuring three different woodlands andoutlining how they are managed. Caroline Stanley
told the story of a community woodlands projectin Galway City called Friends of Merlin Woods.
This 200-acre woodland has been improvedby this group over the last number of years, but
the woodland faces significant development
pressures and threats. Andy Francis, fromTipperary, whose farm includes a Sitka Spruce
plantation, spoke about transitioning from cattle
farming to forestry and the economic issues
around that decision. Eoghan Dalton, authorof An Irish Atlantic Rainforest, spoke about his
rewilding project in the Beara Peninsula, Cork,
where he has returned the land to a temperate,natural rain forest and the huge benefits to naturethat has resulted.
Each of the speakers agreed to come to the
Assembly and had an opportunity to briefly
address the members on anything they thought
had not been covered in the video before
answering questions from the members.
Andy Francis told the assembly that although
her Sitka plantation is non-native woodland it
is better for biodiversity than it was when it wasgrazed farmland.

Coillte needs to balance these objectives.
Mr Carlin outlined that 20% of Coillte land,
90,000 ha, is managed for biodiversity. This
includes ancient woodlands, native woodlands
and more open habitats which contain a richamount of biodiversity. The aim is to increase thisby 45,000 ha by 2030. The long-term plan is toincrease this to 50% of all Coillte land.
12

https://youtu.be/tGys3E0WojU

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Caroline Stanley talked about the council, planners and their lack of care of woodlands and trees
in towns. She pointed out that urban trees and woodlands are just as vital for habitats and wildlife
connections as they are in rural areas. In large built-up areas nature is vital.
Eoghan Daltun told the Assembly that Ireland is one of the most nature depleted countries on theplanet. In order to reverse this collapse we need to understand that in prehistory our island wascovered in wild natural habitat. We now have 1% of natural forest. He told the members that Ireland isalmost a biodiversity desert – there is almost nothing there. We could not be in a worse position. He
suggested the solution to this is rewilding our wild habitats. He suggested a way of doing this is theprovision of subsidies to farmers to rewild their land.

7.4 Environmental Rights
7.4.1 Environmental Rights and the Rights of Nature
Prof. Aine Ryall, School of Law, UCC
Prof. Ryall introduced the relationship between
environmental protection and human rights.
Prof. Ryall highlighted that the right to a healthy
environment is recognized by many statesaround the world and, where that is the case, theright is typically established within constitutional
and/or legislative frameworks. She described as‘significant’ a recent decision by the UN General
Assembly to recognize the right to a clean,healthy and sustainable environment as a humanright.
Prof. Ryall explained that procedural rights canbe considered as tools to enforce the substantive
right to a healthy environment. The Aarhus
Convention requires states to guarantee thethree procedural rights: i) the right to informationon the environment; ii) the right to participate inenvironmental decision-making and iii) the right ofaccess to justice in environmental matters.

Prof. Ryall then examined rights of nature laws
to provide a framework to reconceptualise
our relationship with nature. Rights of naturelaws regard nature itself as being a legal entity
having enforceable rights in the same way thatcompanies have rights. Rights of nature laws
can include the right to exist, flourish and to berestored if degraded, as well as mechanisms
to go to court to defend the rights of nature
because nature cannot speak for itself. Thishas been done both through constitutional andlegislative means in various jurisdictions.
Prof. Ryall outlined that there are many examplesof rights of nature laws in action - Ecuador,
Bolivia and Spain.
Prof. Ryall emphasised that law on its own is no
silver bullet. They must be implemented, enforced
and have proper governance.

The Irish Constitution does not include any
reference to a right to a healthy environment.
However, in 2017 the High Court determined that
there was a constitutional right to an environmentthat is consistent with human dignity. The
Supreme Court did not support this, but in a2020 ruling made an observation that in otherjurisdictions specific wording has been inserted
into constitutions when they were being adopted
or amended. The Supreme Court appeared tosuggest that rather than the courts deciding theissue an amendment to the constitution could beconsidered.
8877.5 Peatlands
7.5.1 Overview of Peatlands and Biodiversity
Dr Catherine Farrell, Ecologist, Coordinator Peatlands Gathering 2021
Dr Farrell outlined that healthy peatlands are wetlands – if you don’t have your wellies on, you’re notin a proper peatland. Peat is partially decomposed plant material that has accumulated over time.
It is dominated by sphagnum moss that has developed in waterlogged soil to form peat. There arepeatlands in nearly every county in Ireland. About one-fifth of Ireland’s landscape is peatlands (we also
have fens) and Ireland is globally significant, so we have a huge responsibility.
Our peatlands improve and regulate water, they are a very important carbon store (peatlands cover
only 3% of earth’s land surface but store double the amount of carbon than all forests), they arevulnerable habitats that support vulnerable species and they also have important cultural and social
values.
Peatland biodiversity is intricately entwined with water and peat. About 59 species of Irish birds occur
on peatland, most as breeding species, 26 of Ireland’s mammals are dependent on peatlands in somephase of their life cycle and 65 of Ireland’s butterfly species are found on peatlands. Only 10% of
Ireland’s biodiversity in such habitats has been properly assessed.
We have mined peatlands for fuel and drained large areas for agriculture and trees and planted
peatlands with wind turbines. Only small fragments of peatlands are intact. We continue to losebiodiversity, reduce water quality and lose carbon.
The original driver was the need was to heat homes. Later, once an economic value in peat was
identified, extraction at industrial level evolved. Many people still use only peat for home energy. Dr
Farrell said that we need to give those people an alternative – a true just transition – in order to moveaway from peat burning.
However, Dr Farrell explained that it is not all bad news. Bord na Móna are now trying to restore
peatlands, there is the work of the Community Wetlands Forum, the Wild Atlantic Nature LIFE project,
Coillte, SUAS, the Natura 2000 network- all doing positive work for peatlands.
She told the Assembly it is time to rethink policy, renew ambition and innovation. We need to develop
a peatland action plan. It does not need a lot of money. It needs will, wisdom, flexibility and clear
thinking.  It is definitely time to restore. Inaction is not an option. However, this involves clarity of roles
and responsibilities, legislation and policy, followed by regulation, enforcement and the prominence ofleaders and champions of peatlands.

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7.5.2 Voices from the Peatland Communities
Seamus Boland, Chief Executive of Irish
Rural Link
The objective of Irish Rural Link is to support
sustainable rural communities. Mr Boland is
involved in the Clara Bog Pilot Project and theJust Transition Programme.
He told the members he had been asked to givea view from the perspective of turf cutters andinsight into the difficulties there have been aroundthis issue. He was once a turf cutter, as was hisfather and grandfather before him, and is proud
to be from the bog. Mr Boland told the membersthat recent history of the bogs and turf cutting is
one about managing change.
In 1998, under the Habitats Directive, people
were ordered to stop cutting turf. This was done
without much notice and without consultation,
which resulted in fierce opposition. He told theAssembly that 100,000 people (estimated byIrish Rural Link) depend on turf for domestic
heating and cooking. They were told they had
to stop, without being given an alternative or aprocess.
However, a decade long compromise wasreached, which included an understoodderogation from the Habitats Directive. Mr
Boland told the Assembly that during that timemechanisation of turf cutting was introduced andthis increased turfcutting fourfold, destroying a lotof bog.
Many expected the derogation to continue, but
in 2010 the EU intervened to enforce the banof turf cutting on 31 sites. The department andgovernment began to engage in discussion and
Mr Boland told the members that the Clara Bog
Committee engaged on the issue. In the end some
relocated their turf cutting to a non-designated site
or availed of compensation of €1,500 per annum
over 15 years. Turf cutting at Clara Bog ended
and since then there has been some restoration
and a pilot project with neighbouring landowners
to support the bog. However, even at the end of
this very acrimonious process, many of the people
involved said that they want to be part of the next
chapter of Clara Bog.

He concluded by telling members that heat, notturf, was the problem. Turf is the cheapest fuelavailable for a large number of local authority
tenants. None of these have had a retrofit to
update their houses to a different form of fuel.
What is stopping that, he asked.
Ciaran Duggan,a member of the Community Wetlands
Forum from Carbury, County Kildare
Mr Duggan told members that 180 hectares ofCarbury Bog have been in community ownershipsince 1906. Community ownership has been
important for the survival of the bog. The
community has looked after it, used it for fuel,protected it and resisted several attempts to havethe bog take over by industry or used for forestry,though they did allow mechanised extraction in asmall area.
When the bog was designated as a Natural
Heritage Area (NHA), the community received aletter telling them what they shouldn’t be doing,
despite the community not doing any of thesethings.
When discussing what to do with their nondesignated bog they have received excellent
support from the Community Wetlands Forum– a group who were trying to address the same
issues as them.
He finished by telling a story of coming across theremains of a 3,000-year-old deer and evidenceof a fire. The bog has preserved that for them. It
was up to us now to preserve the bog.
Nuala Madigan, Chief Executive,
Irish Peatlands Conservation Council
Ms Madigan told members that the Council was
founded in 1982 to conserve a representative
sample of Irish bogs for the future.
Outlining the importance of peatlands forbiodiversity, Ms Madigan told the Assemblythat 18% of Irish landscape is peatland, 15%of original Irish flora are peatland species, 14%of birds occur on peatland (most as breeding
species), 26% of mammals depend on peatland
in some phase of life, 65% of butterflies are foundon peatland.
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However, the situation regarding the condition of peatlands and peatlands biodiversity is not good.
75% of peatland habitat has been mined or drained and just 1% is actively growing. The conservation
status of all bog types is ‘Bad’. 27% of bog forming sphagnum mosses, 44% of peatland bird species
and 20% of peatland plant species are on the red – endangered - list.
Our peatlands are not in a healthy condition. But it is not too late, she told the members, noting theCouncil have produced their 6th Action Plan which the members may wish to consult.
Actions that can be taken include the protection of designated sites and the overdue formal
designation of proposed NHAs, restoration and rehabilitation of peatlands, the carrying out a complete
inventory of peatland biodiversity, encouragement of landowners (60% of bogs are privately owned)
to protect biodiversity through a nationally funded scheme, increasing awareness and, importantly,
integrating peatland biodiversity into all government departments and development plans.
She concluded by saying that we can’t go backwards, but today we can benefit from our greater
understanding and research.

7.6 Irish Language and Mythology as Primers for Sustainable Living
Manchán Magan,
Writer and documentary maker
Mr Magan advised members that in theirdeliberations when looking to the future andrethinking the present, they should also lookto our past. On the west coast of Ireland wehave people with the DNA of our Bronze Ageancestors. They should remember that today,
within the Irish language, culture and myths,
there are thousands of years of accumulated
knowledge and great sources of wisdom.
He alternated between Irish and English toillustrate how the language, culture and myths
contained that knowledge that can help us to live
sustainably.

Every community once had a sacred tree, more
important and lasting than a king. We may havelost the ancient trees, but we have not lost the
memories of them.
We also had a profound understanding of the sea
and that too is encoded in the language.
Mr Magan told the Assembly that if we wantto know how to live in a sustainable way, thatknowledge is still encoded within our language
and oral tradition. In a world full of uncertainty
we might need the information embedded in thisculture and heritage.

Our society evolved to live in a wild, rocky, windy
island in a sustainable way because we became
so attuned to the land and landscapes. He
gave an example of a young man who was only
allowed to have children when he could provethat he could live sustainably. We have only
survived on this island because our ancestors
learned to live sustainably and harmoniously withnature.
He told the members that all but two of our rivers
have female names, that they are female beings.
If we regarded rivers in the same way today how
would that change the way we treat them? He
said we would not be pumping nitrates into them.
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Summary Content of
Meeting 4:
5-6 November 2022

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The following is a summary of the meeting held on the weekend of 5-6 November 2022; avideo record of the meeting, including presentations, plenary sessions and Q&A, is available
on the Assembly’s website at:https://citizensassembly.ie/citizens-assembly-on-biodiversity-loss/meetings/5th-6thnovember-2022/

8.1 Freshwater					8.1.1 Water Quality and Biodiversity Pressures in Ireland’s Freshwaters
Prof. Mary Kelly-Quinn, School of Biology & Environmental Science,
University College Dublin

Prof. Kelly-Quinn outlined the importance of freshwater and the essential ecosystem services they
provide. They are human civilisation’s lifeblood. We are losing freshwater species faster than any otherecosystems. It is an invisible tragedy.
Ireland has 184,000kms of freshwater channels. 75% are small headland streams less than 2m wide.
These are the most important and vulnerable parts of the system. Ireland has 12,200 lakes (2% of landarea) - most are less than 1ha in area - which provide significant contribution to biodiversity. Various
wetlands are regarded as the kidneys of the landscape.
She told members that natural bankside vegetation - riparian zones - have strong linkages with theseaquatic systems and are essential for their health and protection from pollution.
Prof. Kelly-Quinn outlined the variety of species in freshwater systems and showed the difference
between healthy and unhealthy systems.
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She reported that almost 50% of freshwater aquatic ecosystems are in unsatisfactory ecologicalcondition due to:• Agriculture, which is the dominant cause with run-off of nutrients, excess fine sediment andpesticides.
• Land drainage.
• Discharges of poorly treated or raw sewage from urban wastewater treatment plants, domestic
treatment systems and storm water overflows.
• Run-off of nutrients and excess sediment from forestry operations.
She reported that the decline of our freshwater systems is largely driven by agriculture intensification.
The number of near pristine river sites have declined from over 500 in the 1980s to 32 today. 20% to
30% of assessed freshwater biodiversity are vulnerable or at worse conservation status. There is a lackof data for many species.
Prof. Kelly-Quinn concluded by telling the Assembly that we are at a tipping point, after which it may be
impossible to reverse the damage. There must be a sense of urgency in tackling declining water quality
and biodiversity loss. Climate change will exacerbate the challenges and while lots of good work is
ongoing it is not at sufficient scale. An Emergency Plan with coordinated actions is needed.

8.1.2 Freshwater Catchments in Ireland – Issues, Challenges & Solutions for Aquatic Ecosystems
Donal Daly,
Catchment Scientist and Hydrologist
Mr Daly outlined that almost 50% of freshwateraquatic ecosystems do not meet theirenvironmental objectives. Targeted actions,
utilising the right measure in the right placeapproach, are needed.
We need disciplines and public bodies to moveaway from siloed approaches to an integrated94

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approach to freshwater management. He told
the Assembly that An Fóram Uisce’s proposed
Framework for Integrated Land and LandscapeManagement provides an appropriate approach.
River catchments are the best landscape units
for management of aquatic ecosystems. There
are 46 catchment management units and 583
sub-catchments in Ireland. Understanding eachis critical to achieving the ‘right measure in theright place’.
Catchment science, encompassing theappropriate disciplines (e.g. ecology, agriculturalscience and environmental science), provides therequired specialism. Thus, collaboration between
relevant organisations and training in catchment
science are needed.
Dr Daly told the members that agriculturalactivities pose the greatest threat to aquatic
ecosystems. Tiny losses of phosphorous fromfarmland – less than 5% of applied phosphorus to streams can cause significant impacts. Fixedbuffer zones (e.g. 2 m, 5 m) in the regulations areoften inadequate. He told members that there
needs to be spatially targeted buffers, as well as
planting of the right trees in the right place, tohelp minimise phosphate losses.
Dr Daly informed members that nitrate is aparticularly challenging pollutant, as it entersgroundwater in freely draining land and then into
estuaries (particularly along the south coast).
As compliance with regulations may not be
sufficient, large reductions in nitrate loads areneeded.
Farm inspections are not adequate on their own
in restoring our ecosystems. The involvement,
co-operation and co-ownership by farmers isessential.
He told the Assembly that future success will
require resources for:• an adequate number of scientists and farmadvisors trained and working as catchment
scientists.
• sufficient targeted farm inspections basedon evidence-based catchment science, withsanctions where necessary.
• a results-based payments approach pay farmers adequately for public goods
provided.

•collaboration and mutual learning between
relevant organisations, disciplines andcommunities.

8.1.3 Pressures on Freshwater Biodiversity in
Ireland
Dr Bernadette White,
Local Authority Waters Programme(LAWPRO)Dr White told the Assembly that our freshwaters
and marine ecosystems are being damagedby pollutants and damage to habitats. The
majority of our high-status waters are not in goodcondition. LAWPRO looks at prioritised areas foraction which concentrate on local catchments
and small streams. Dr White outlined four mainpressures.

The overwhelming evidence is that agriculture is
the largest cause of water quality decline. Over
92% of problems are due to agriculture. She
told the Assembly a pollutant-driven solution
is needed to significantly reduce the impact ofphosphate run-off, which causes algal blooms
in rivers and lakes. She told members that
sediment caused by land use activities smothers
riverbeds, impacts the habitat of fish andmacroinvertebrates. Members were also toldthat nitrates cause problems in estuaries: 43% ofrivers have high nitrates and 39% of rivers haveincreasing nitrate. In addition, Dr White reported
that pollution caused by silage effluent, dairy
washings, slurry, etc. is hugely damaging.
Rivers have also suffered from straightening,
deepening and widening, as well as the removal95

8of bank side vegetation, largely to facilitate drainage of agricultural lands, or via the Arterial Drainage
Act.
Dr White informed the Assembly that forestry can increase nutrients such as phosphate and increase
sediments. Legacy forestry on unsuitable sites pose a significant future risk. Urban waste water causesorganic pollution and excessive nutrients. There is particular concern around smaller wastewater plants
in towns and villages.
Dr White told members that better regulation, enforcement and better recognition of environmental
damage in the court system is needed. Communities want better drinking water and space for nature
and wildlife for now and future generations. An integrated approach is key. LAWPRO is championing
nature-based solutions and working to increase community participation.
She concluded by telling the members that the evidence of damage to our freshwater is clear. She
emphasised that the sense of urgency voiced by scientists and communities is not being translated
into adequate financial, legal and other supports that are required to address the issue.

8.1.4 Voices from the Freshwater Community
Colm Gallagher, Chairman of Cloghaneely Angling Association, Falcarragh, County Donegal
Mr Gallagher spoke about the essential importance of biodiversity and catchment management toanglers. He spoke of the wonderful freshwater environment in Donegal for angling, but highlighted thedeterioration of water quality especially in the small streams in the upper stretches of their two rivers.
The Angling Association produced a catchment management plan in 2018. As solutions need to
involve the whole community, they have a Catchment Management Group made up of representativesof state bodies, local landowners, businesses, community and volunteer bodies which they consult
with at all stages.
96

8
The Angling Association have conducted astudy on the sources of silt in the rivers, whichis their main problem. Siltation from quarrying
activity and run-off from peat cutting, has had
a huge impact on salmon spawning grounds.
Mr Gallagher told the members that they havebeen in court for two years trying to stop what hedescribed as illegal quarrying. The Association
has invested in monitoring equipment, working
with partners and local communities to promote
and protect freshwater quality.
Barry Deane, Chief Executive Officer of the
National Federation of Group Water Schemes
Mr Deane described some of the ways in which
the community-owned group water schemes
are working to halt and support biodiversity loss.
He told the members that trust is the core value
underpinning successful group water schemes.
Schemes depend on building and maintaining
trust within local communities while trusted local
champions are key to engaging people at a local
level.
There are multiple co-benefits to group water
schemes. For instance, water quality for groupschemes is seriously threatened by the increasing
risk of pesticides - an issue also impacting
on biodiversity. He outlined examples of local
farmers supporting group water schemes, forexample giving up small parcels of their land
to create buffers in targeted areas to prevent
flow from overland sources when the ground issaturated. This not only protects the scheme’swater quality, but also benefits biodiversity. The
social capital within community structures, suchas group water schemes, is a powerful tool thatneeds to be exploited to the full to deliver cobenefits to society and biodiversity.
Trish Murphy, Project Officer with the
Inishowen Rivers Trust
The Inishowen Rivers Trust was established in2016. It is one of a growing network that works
to protect, restore, enhance and conserve thenatural water bodies and to communicate withthe public and agencies.
Ms Murphy told members that the Trust isengaged in a series of nature-based solutions
to respond to problems that affect all rivers

in Ireland e.g. flooding, sedimentation, runoff, invasive species and hydromorphologicalmodifications. Habitat restoration is key.
She outlined some of their projects. These aresoft engineering solutions to support natural flood
management, bank erosion control measures torepair and restore normal functioning, in-stream
barrier mitigation, organic control measuresand community awareness around invasive
alien species. She also told the Assembly
about measures taken to reduce the impact ofagricultural activity by working with farmers to
improve riparian buffer zones, and measures toenhance biodiversity through creating natural
corridors, tree planting and public awareness.
Organic bioremediation of invasive Japaneseknotweed has been successfully trialled and is
now being scaled up.
Bernadette Connolly,
Sustainable Water Network
Ms Connolly told the Assembly there are 25
members of the Sustainable Water Network
around the country and their focus is to meet theaim the new draft River Basin Management Planof having all water in good status by 2027.
She told the Assembly that their assessments,
based on chemistry and biodiversity, foundthat almost 50% of waters are not in goodstatus and that all pressures are going in thewrong direction. She told members that weare at a critical juncture. Previous River BasinManagement plans have failed, and the current
draft plan is not ambitious and does not haveenough targeted measures.
She highlighted the importance of invertebrates
for freshwater biodiversity and that 88% of our
SACs are dependent on freshwater habitats,which are not in good condition.
Ms. Connolly proposed a number of measures
including that the new National Biodiversity Planbe put on a statutory footing, a national river,lake and wetland restoration programme should
be developed, there should be reform of theArterial Drainage Act 1946, wetland drainage
should be prohibited and all forestry operations
to be subject to a satisfactory assessment under
the Water Framework Directive. In addition97

8
she highlighted that measures should be taken
to halt sewage discharges to polluted water
bodies and agricultural risk assessments should
be introduced for all intensive farms under apermitting/ licencing system. She emphasised
the importance of public and community
involvement.
She told the members that water is our life
source and the quality of our water is a profound,persistent and important issue that needs to beaddressed.

8.1.5 Overview of Invasive Species andFreshwater.
Prof. Ian Montgomery,Emeritus Prof. of Animal Ecology, Queens
University Belfast, member of the EAG
Ireland has roughly 17,000 species of which
about 1,200 have been introduced. 124 of theintroduced species are classified as invasive,
having medium or high negative impact on
biodiversity. There are about another 40 potential
invasive species that might come our way in the
not-too-distant future.

Prof. Montgomery said that this is a neglectedarea with little data.
The composition of our ecological communities
is unique and we have unique genetic material on
the island of Ireland. There are separate bodies,
north and south, dealing with invasive species
which are coordinated to some extent, while
there is an issue with internal invasive species inthe EU.
Prof. Montgomery told the Assembly thatinvasive species are a growing problem with arecent upsurge in the problem due to global tradeand climate change. Plants contribute greatly to
our invasive species, and we can expect more
simply because of climate change. From casestudies of trees, 38 species of them are affectedby anything from pathogens to invasive plant
species. He referenced the problems of gunnera,
rhododendron and Japanese knotweed.
The Pacific oyster is grown in aquaculture, but
has escaped into the wild and become invasive,
damaging habitats and changing ecosystemprocesses. There is a need to try and produce
sustainable commercial fisheries.  
Prof. Montgomery outlined the damage being
done by two specific invasive mammals. Where
the invasive greater white-toothed shrew
becomes established it makes Ireland’s smallest
mammal, the native pygmy shrew, extinct. It also
dramatically reduces the hedgerow and roadside
invertebrate communities and the number andabundance of species goes down alarmingly.
The invasive bank vole also leads to significant
declines in the wood mouse.

988
An invasive freshwater shrimp species is moving
south from Northern Ireland. This invasive
species reduces the number of our native
freshwater shrimp. As a result, this uniquespecies may become extinct and may change
the entire biodiversity of the rivers.
The impacts of invasive species tend to be
negative and undermine ecosystem services.
Everything from the production of food to humanwell-being is affected by invasive species ofsome sort or another.

8.1.6 Freshwater Fish in Ireland –how to protect and restore biodiversity.
Dr Ken Whelan, Fisheries Scientist
Dr Whelan told the Assembly that the limestone
portion in the middle of Ireland is where resident
freshwater fish live, while the more mountainous
areas around the coast are home to migrant
species. We have 12,000 lakes and about
73,000kms of rivers and streams, a length thatwould stretch almost twice around the planet.

natural monitors of what’s happening in ourrivers, as well as being a valuable recreational
resource.
He told the Assembly that we have some of thebest legislation to protect freshwater fish, but his
experience over 40 years is that it is not being
implemented.
Dr Whelan outlined the key pressures on
freshwater which provide huge challenges:• Land management practices, such as
straightening or river channels and otherworks have caused immeasurable physicaldamage.
• There has been a huge drop in water quality
since 2015 when milk quotas for dairy farming
were dropped.
• Barriers have been put in the way hindering
passage of fish.
• Climate change is increasing the temperatureof our waters.
• Invasive species is a big issue in our
freshwater.
• The problem of sea lice in areas where wehave poorly managed salmon firms.
• The effect on migratory fish from windfarms.
The effects of these on their own or in
combination affects ‘cold, clear and clean’ waterand can be disastrous.

Ireland once had 14 species of fish. There are
now 29. Quite a number of the non-native
species have been here for a very long timeand have naturalised. But more recent arrivals
are causing problems. He emphasised that thenative species rely on ‘cold, clear, clean water’.

There are nature-based solutions to flood
relief and flood control but there needs to be anationally directed and coordinated approachto design. There also needs to be a national
committee looking at best practice to easefish passage. With the help of citizen scientists
our pristine waters need to be identified andthen protected. We are not even close tounderstanding and addressing the problem ofinvasive species while a more varied approach toriverside vegetation, not just trees, is needed toprotect and support freshwater biodiversity.

Freshwater fish are drivers of biodiversity. They’realso indicator species, with salmon in particularclassified as a keystone species. They are great

He concluded by reminding members that you
are not dealing with a channel; you are dealing
with a river - a living entity.

998
8.2 Children’s and Young People’s Assembly presented their work.
Members of the Children and Young People’s Assembly presented their work which included 58
recommendations. There was also a questions and answers session with the members of theAssembly.

8.3 Marine and Coastal Environments				8.3.1 High-level overview – broader marine biodiversity current status and potential measures.
Richard Cronin, Chief Policy Advisor for the Marine Environment, Department of Housing,
Local Government and Heritage
Mr Cronin set out that we live in a blue planet withoceans covering 71% of the planet, absorbing
90% of the excess heat produced by humans
and producing about 50% of the oxygen webreathe. Ireland’s share is about 480,000 square
kms - seven times the size of our land mass.
The sea is a three-dimensional interconnectedenvironment. This necessitates co-operation
between countries.
100

8
Mr Cronin described our main policy tools. Firstly, through the auspices of the Convention for theProtection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic (OSPAR convention) - consistingof 15 countries including Ireland. Above that structure, there is one open system based on the
United Nations Convention for the Law of the Sea dating from 1982. There is no legal protection forbiodiversity outside of these designated areas.
At EU level we have the Marine Strategy Framework Directive and Water Framework Directive.
Every six years the EU measures the state of the environment, marine litter, water littering, animalentanglement and ingestion. The measures provide an overall assessment of the health of the marine
environment.
Mr Cronin outlined that our biodiversity indicators are not good. These problems are largely historical,
driven by society drivers: food, energy, recreation, travel and transportation. Repair of marine
biodiversity needs to be long term and consistent, with actions done in cooperation with participation
networks. He told the Assembly that the State is on the verge of publishing a new law for Marine
Protected Areas, which will considerably increase the number of protected areas. This has huge public
support.
He outlined that future challenges are difficult. At present, Ireland is not causing a lot of pollutionpressure in the Irish marine environment, but we certainly have coastal problems. He stated that there
is much misalignment of policy. For instance, while there is policy for adoption of an ecosystem-based
approach, we are incentivizing things like food security and energy without incentivizing nature. Thereis also a problem of shifting baselines - what we want to protect and restore is gone by the time we getthere.
He concluded with a slide that listed the future challenges: sustainability, policy and funding
misalignment, social justice, climate change. He said that these are what are known as “wicked”
problems – meaning they are sticky problems and hard to unpick. The people asking to fix it,
paradoxically, are simultaneously causing it. The easy problems have been solved but now the nonbinary outcomes are going to be most important, the cumulative effect of drivers, activities andgeopolitics. We need to incentivise nature and to make constant progress without losing sight of theurgency of the issue.

8.3.2 Biodiversity in our oceans – A scientific perspective.
Dr Ciaran Kelly, Director of Fisheries Ecosystems Advisory Services, the Marine Institute
Dr Kelly told members that to the unaccustomed
eye the ocean can seem like a huge blue void.
The ocean provides at least 50% to 80% of theoxygen that we breathe and absorbs at least
50% of the CO2 from the atmosphere. It is‘planet ocean’, not planet Earth.
Ireland has 10 times more seabed than it does
land, but that represents only 2% of the North
Atlantic to which it is connected. It is like having avery nice garden adjoining a park – the park has
a huge impact on your garden, while what you doin your garden impacts on the park.
Issues and solutions in the oceans are not thesame as you would have on land. On land there101

8
are food pyramids. But things are much more complex in the marine environment where there are ‘foodwebs’. This complexity is an important issue as anything we do can lead to unexpected outcomes.
Dr Kelly said that shifting baselines caused by global warming are important, but it is not homogenous.
It is happening at different rates in different places and some of the changes we are seeing whichappear to be climate related are in fact being caused by other factors. So, complexity matters.
The Marine Institute is acting with fishers to change fishing methods to avoid capture of vulnerable
species in areas.
Dr Kelly summarised that the issues are complex, and we need to focus on where we can be effective.
He concluded by quoting Gretta Thornberg: “knowledge that your house is on fire is one thing. But it’sof no use to you unless you know how to get out. And once you get out of your house and you manage
to put the fire out you’re going to have to realise that the fire has caused some damage or somechange to the house. We have to think about that too.”

8.3.3 Voices from the Marine Sector
Sean O’Donoghue, Killybegs Fishermen’s Organisation
Mr O’Donoghue told members that Ireland’s Exclusive Economic Zone is over six times the size of ourland area. He noted that the fishing industry is worth €1.2b nationally and the seafood sector provides
16% of coastal employment in County Donegal.
He told the Assembly that healthy oceans and biodiversity are critical for their industry and thatfisheries are essential to provide a sustainable food source. There needs to be a balance between
socio-economic and biodiversity sustainability. His organisation is very much aligned with Sustainable
Development Goal 14 – Life Below Water. This link is critical to their future.
Mr O’Donoghue outlined some of the challenges facing fishers, including the serious impact of Brexit
with huge reductions in the catch of mackerel and Dublin Bay Prawns. As well as fishers from othercountries not adhering to the rules of the Common Fisheries Policy there are a lot of competing
activities and factors such as renewable energy, leisure and shipping and Marine Protected Areas.
Everyone needs to be accommodated but there needs to be robust science, consultation andcompromise.
Dr Simon Berrow, Irish Whale and Dolphin GroupDr Berrow told members about the rich biodiversity in the Economic Exclusion Zone of our seas. While
we have a responsibility to maintain, conserve and protect this biodiversity, it is also an opportunity.
Dr Berrow told the assembly that we need to build knowledge. We need to know where species
are and when, what species occur, their health and their habits. We have very little understanding102

8of historic levels of biodiversity, and we don’t know what a pristine environment looks like. Better
contemporary knowledge would help inform many activities and policies related to offshore renewableenergy, navy manoeuvres, deep sea mining, etc.
He outlined the need to work with inshore communities, in partnership. He emphasised the need toproperly manage foraging fish, which are one of the essential marine ecosystem components. We
need to work with coastal communities and treat fishers with respect to rebuild stock and restore
habitats. He suggested a pilot scheme, similar to compensating farmers for not farming certain areasof land, compensating fishers not to fish certain areas in order to enable ecosystem recovery. He also
told members that we need to become an ocean literate society where we all feel like islanders andhave knowledge of the waters around us. Without this it will be hard to make progress in restoring thebiodiversity around the island of Ireland.
Dr Donal Griffin, Policy Officer, Fair Seas Campaign

Dr Donal Griffin, Marine Policy Officer, Fair Seas Campaign
Dr Griffin told the Assembly that we know how to halt and reverse biodiversity decline in our seas, whileat the same time addressing climate change. The reason that biodiversity decline is still happening
comes down to money. The lack of funding is a huge barrier and Dr Griffin suggested that themembers’ first recommendation should be to properly fund biodiversity protection and restoration. He
proposed a figure of €1b from the current budgetary surplus.
Dr Griffin suggested the money should be spent on both the designation and the management ofan ecologically coherent network of Marine Protected Areas. He told the Assembly that there shouldbe active restoration of biodiversity with ‘boots on the ground’ rehabilitating species, habitats andecosystems.
He concluded by telling the members that it was not too late but there needed to be a sense ofurgency and an emergency response.

10388.4 Energy Production
8.4.1 Energy production and biodiversity
Prof. Jane Stout, Professor in Botany,
Trinity College Dublin
Prof. Stout outlined the impacts of climatechange on biodiversity and told members that weneed to address climate change without
damaging biodiversity.
Forestry needs planting of the right trees in
the right place to ensure that it is ecologicallysound, economically viable and socially just.
In agriculture multispecies swards provide
benefits for both biodiversity and agricultural
production. Restoration of peatlands is good forthe bog and its ecosystems and good for carbon
sequestration, but benefits can take a long time.
Prof. Stout outlined the findings of a recent
review of potential impacts of renewable energy
technologies on biodiversity, while adding that
research is ongoing and much is still unknown.
Offshore windfarms would only take up a tiny
fraction of our marine areas. A potential positiveis that they could be co-located within MPAs,
but still we do not fully know the impacts of thistechnology. Potential negative impacts include
the destruction and alteration of the seabed,collision injury/mortality for birds and potential
damage cause by onshore infrastructure.
Current negative outcomes associated withonshore wind farms include inappropriate siting,habitat loss and fragmentation, displacement ofspecies, and injury/mortality of species. There iscurrently very little understanding of the impacts
on insects. We need to find ways to monitor
impacts and mitigate negative outcomes. On
the positive side wind farms could assist in therestoration of habitats and could be co-locatedon intensively farmed land.
Generating energy from solar power is beginningto expand in Ireland and is an area that we needto understand better. Potential negative impacts
include habitat loss, creation of microclimates,
water pollution and the use of herbicides tocontrol plant growth. However, there may be
the opportunity for lots of solar panels in built

up areas, where areas under panels could befunctional urban spaces.
Bio-energy, plants grown specifically to cut andburn as fuel, may not have a positive climatechange impact and has potential to damage
biodiversity if located on high nature value
farmland.
She concluded by telling members that therelationship between climate change andbiodiversity loss is complex, we are in crisis but
no one size fits all.

8.4.2 Voices from the Energy Sector
Dr Val Cummins, Operations and Projects
Director, Simply Blue Energy GroupDr Cummins described the concept of floating
offshore wind, the benefits, the potential impacts
and opportunities for the environment and forecosystems. She explained that floating offshore
wind technology differs from the traditional
technology that involved piling into the seabed inwaters around 30 metres deep. Floating offshore
wind goes into much deeper waters (60-80
metres deep and usually over the horizon as seenfrom land). The turbine is secured to the seabedby a system of moorings and anchors.
The State has set a target of 30 gigawatts offloating offshore wind from the west coast. As
one gigawatt would power roughly one million
1048
homes this would allow us to reach our climatechange targets as well as export energy. The
installation techniques and methods for these areless invasive than piling. The industry is looking todeliver 6.5 gigawatts by 2030 which would create
approximately 13,000 jobs.
Simply Blue Group is developing two floating
offshore wind projects – 35 km off the coast ofCork and 35km off the Clare coast.
She reported that the ecosystem impacts offloating offshore wind has been examined
specifically under certain outcomes:• Dampening of wave energy in and aroundfloating devices could potentially provide
enhanced areas for foraging fish.
• Collision risks for seabirds would be lessened
because the floating platforms are further
from the shore and the blades much higher
from sea level.
• The floating platform could present a
structure amenable to species colonisation.
• As areas around the platforms would not
be available for trawler fishing they could bedesignated as marine protected areas.
Pat Smith, Managing Director,
Local Power Ltd.
Mr Smith began his talk by telling the membersthat as hunger threatens 800 million people
globally today and the world population is set togrow to 10 billion by 2050 the primary function of
farmland must be to produce food. Agriculture,
however, is intimately interlinked with both therenewable energy sector and biodiversity.

biodiversity. He also posed the question: whytake good agriculture land away from foodproduction for renewable solar generation whenother options are available?
Over 25,000 acres of roof space on farms
and businesses across the country could
accommodate distributed solar PV energy
generation13 and provide enough renewableenergy to power 500,000 homes.
Anaerobic digestion14 is already used to generatebiomethane to assist meeting renewable gas
requirements. An Bord Gáis have an ambition
to deliver 30% of its gas from renewables in
the next 10 years. The same digestion process
generates a natural CO2 – a product used by the
drinks and food industry - while also producing
a soil enhancing biofertilizer. There are alreadymany hundreds of AD plants built in Europe
with government supports. There is similar
opportunity here.
Wind is a natural resource we have inabundance. We could encourage thedevelopment of dedicated one-off turbines onland to support energy-intensive businesses.
Mr Smith concluded by saying that competing
forces – food, energy, biodiversity – need tolisten to each other, come to decisions and takeactions for a sustainable future.

He suggested that Ireland’s policy direction
must provide long term sustainability both
environmentally and economically. Mr
Smith said over 95% of the land area undersolar farms are accessible for plant growth
and wildlife enhancement. There are welldocumented biodiversity guidelines for solar
farm developments and planning applications
that include measures for the enhancement of
13

Solar panels that produce electricity are known as solar photovoltaic (PV) modules. These panels generate electricity when 		
exposed to light. Solar PV is the rooftop solar seen on homes and businesses. Solar panels that produce hot water are known as 		
solar thermal collectors or solar hot water collectors.

14

According to the American Biogas Council, “Anaerobic digestion is a series of biological processes in which microorganisms 		
break down biodegradable material in the absence of oxygen.” The products of this process are biogas, liquid digestate, and solid
digestate.

10588.5 Urban and Built Environment
8.5.1 High-level overview – Planning and Biodiversity in our Urban/Built Up Areas
Dr Michael Lennon, Associate Professorof Planning and Environmental Policy,
University College Dublin
Dr Lennon began his presentation by outliningthat the reason we should consider biodiversity
in urban planning is that we share thesespaces with plants and animals. And in orderto do this we need to have an understandingof planning. Biodiversity in an urban setting
is up against many competing challenges:
housing, regeneration, flood management, retail,transport, etc.
He told members that that there are five aspects
to successful planning for biodiversity:
i. A solid legal framework for proactive
biodiversity enhancement.
ii. Evidence-informed policy (e.g. in county/city
development plans).
iii. Activities by local authorities on their lands(e.g. pollinator planting in urban parks) andby other state bodies in urban areas (e.g.,the Office of Public Works regarding flood
prevention).
iv. How decisions on planning applications
are made. This is called development
management.
v. Enforcement of planning decisions.

Dr Lennon told members that each ofthese aspects is currently weakened todiffering degrees by the lack of a dedicatedlegal framework for proactive biodiversity
enhancement, a lack of expertise in local
authorities, a lack of financial resources in local
authorities and poor enforcement.
The emergence and integration of a ‘GreenInfrastructure’ approach to planning overthe past decade has helped redress someof these long-standing issues. This is being
integrated with national, regional, county andlocal plans in Ireland. This looks at green spaces
as infrastructure in the same way as otherinfrastructure, e.g. transport, and that thesegreen spaces should provide multi-functional
benefits including heat mitigation, drainage
management, biodiversity, recreation, mobility
and the provision of community spaces.
Some innovations in other countries include
UK Biodiversity Net Gain, coming into force in
2023. This will provide for a net gain of 10% in
all new developments so that now development
will increase biodiversity. In New Zealand they
have adopted an approach of heavily resourced
enforcement.

10688.5.2 Nature-based solutions in urban
environments, biodiversity & humanperspective
Dr Marcus Collier, Associate Professorof Sustainability Science in the School of
Natural Sciences, Trinity College Dublin
Dr Collier outlined that the concept of NatureBased Solutions looks to draw on nature’s vast
resources for solutions. Solutions that are inspired
and supported by nature are cost effective andhave environmental, social and economic benefits
and build resilience in systems.
Dr Collier then gave examples of naturebased solutions and their potential in urban
environments. Green roofs provide a variety offunctions including insulation, water attenuation,
noise and glare reduction, the capture of carbon
and dust, as well as biodiversity by providing
habitats and steppingstones between habitats(although the type of plants is often not of highbiodiversity value).
Another example is living walls, which consist ofplants growing on the exterior walls of buildings.
Again these provide very good insulation, as well
as being aesthetically pleasing. He also showed
Irish examples of incorporating nature-based
solutions into ordinary structures.

8.5.3 A Green Future in Utrecht
Jeroen Schenkels, Green Advisor,
City of Utrecht, Netherlands
Mr Schenkels introduced the city of Utrecht asa compact city of 360,000 people with a large
student population and with an ambition to be a
Green and Healthy city, even as it looks to growby 100,000 people by 2040. This involves thechallenge of making sure the city stays green andhealthy across all areas. This will be underpinned
by what he described as ‘building with nature’,with an extra 440 ha of green space added forevery additional 40,000 of population.
He outlined for members how Utrecht is using
solutions that match the natural systems. For
example, they are monitoring 30 key species
to check the health of the natural system andare including obligatory measures in new
developments, such as bird and bat boxes, theprovision of habitats such as 30 nest boxes per
ha. and a minimum of 100m2 of vertical green perha, etc.
Mr Schenkels illustrated multi-functional green
roofs on bus shelters, the greening of inner-cityhigh-rise developments (internally and externally)
and the need to raise awareness among the
public about biodiversity.

Dr Collier told the members that 70% of the
global population will live in cities by 2050
and that one third of these will live below thepoverty line. The only real contact these people
will have with nature will be in their urbanneighbourhood. Therefore, nature in cities will
become increasingly important. There are plentyof spaces for nature in cities and increasing
demand from society and communities for naturein new developments. There are currently 35 EU
projects on Nature-Based Solutions, with Irish
universities being partners in some.
Dr Collier concluded by saying that there aremany co-benefits to greening our cities including
increasing biodiversity, reconnecting people withnature and improving quality of life.

1078
8.5.4 Urban Voices
Hans Zomer, CEO, Global Action Plan
Mr Zomer introduced Global Action Plan as an environmental behaviour change organisation since, inorder to influence change, we need to understand the psychology of behaviour. He noted that policychange tends to focus on awareness raising, education and knowledge, but the tricky part is the
motivation. Biodiversity actions can be invisible to many, so the incentive to change remains small andthose who want change feel isolated. This is referred to as the values perception gap where “we end
up in some sort of spiral of inaction.”
Mr Zomer informed members about the Green Living and Sustainable Community Garden in Ballymun.
Working with Dublin City Council and the community in Ballymun, the programme aims to build greater
connections between people in the community and their built-up environment. Ireland is a little behindthe curve in terms of community gardens (there are over 100 nationwide). The community garden inthis programme engages with individuals, schools and businesses operating as a hub for learning andsocial inclusion. The objectives of the programme are to demonstrate that green living is possible.
Mr Zomer told the assembly that Fingal County Council now aims to replicate this unique social
inclusion horticulture program in West Dublin.
Dr Paul Holloway, Geographic Information Systems and Spatial Ecology, UCC
Dr Holloway outlined the Cork Urban Biodiversity study, which used satellite imagery to map theextent of habitats within Cork City. The results showed that, for a snapshot in time, these hidden andcommunity spaces comprise a large amount (66%) of green space in the city. Where there was more
green space there was more biodiversity and where there was more blue space (water) there was a
decline in biodiversity. Areas with combinations of green and blue spaces contributed most.
He informed members that ongoing citizen science or community data projects have helped estimate
when migrant birds are arriving, when insects are emerging and when vegetation is greening. He
outlined that there is a correlation between greening of vegetation and emergence of insects, but the108

8birds are arriving before a lot of their insects have emerged which may break the food web. That finding
might mean that the international ‘No Mow May’ awareness campaign that has developed in recent
years should now start earlier.
Dr Holloway told the assembly that there is less information about when the birds leave, which would
be useful in a global context. To meet this gap, UCC provided technology and training for older people
to collect data. This has contributed to data, but also increased well-being of the participants andhas also provided evidence that people have changed their behaviour in their gardens based on what
they are learning through the technology. These behaviour changes have resulted in an increase inbiodiversity in these local and private gardens, which feeds back into the important spatial network in
the overall city.
Ricky Whelan, Project Manager, BirdWatch Swift Project
Mr Whelan gave an account of his work with the BirdWatch Swift Project, by introducing thecharismatic swift which spends about 10 months of the year in constant uninterrupted flight. Thesebirds breed, sleep, mate and feed on the wing, and can fly 110km per hour. However, he informed
members that swifts are on the red list and in danger of extinction.
Swifts have declined by 58% between 1998 and 2016. The reasons for this are not clear. They are
fledging less young over time, because it is harder to get enough food for a nest full of chicks. 90%
have moved into urban areas. They nest in cracks and crevices on the roof tiles on roof plates but, withso much insulation in houses now, there is often nowhere for them to go. In addition, there are climate
and biodiversity related problems meaning they cannot get enough food.
There are many commercially available nest boxes and nest bricks to replace lost nesting places for
swifts. Mr Whelan showed examples of where swift boxes and bricks had been effectively placed e.g.
Castlebar Leisure Centre and Portloaise Library.
Mr Whelan told members that it is vital to protect the existing swift populations and avoid local orregional extinctions. He outlined that major gains can be brought through the planning process by
including swift bricks stipulations in planning consents (such as Loais Co, Offaly Co, etc.) and, while
there are conflicts with retrofitting schemes for energy, these are not insurmountable.

109

9

Summary Content of
Meeting 5:26-27 November 2022

110

9
The following is a summary of the meeting held on the weekend of 26-27 November 2022; avideo record of the meeting, including presentations, plenary sessions and Q&A, is available
on the Assembly’s website at:https://citizensassembly.ie/citizens-assembly-on-biodiversity-loss/meetings/26th27th-november-2022/

9.1 What is the value of Biodiversity?		
Prof. Jenny McElwaine, TCD and member of the EAG
Prof. McElwaine gave a short presentation to the members bringing them back to the basic themes ofthe first meeting held in Dublin Castle in May. What is biodiversity loss? Why is it important? She told
members that the death of nature, the extinction of species, means the death of nature experience forhumans. She reminded the members of what members of the Children and Young People’s Assembly
had said, biodiversity should be treated like a member of the family.
She reminded the members of the ecosystem services provided by biodiversity – not just food, waterand air but also carbon store, medicinal and technological values, and cultural and artistic values. She
concluded by telling the members that when we lose biodiversity, we lose potential future remedies forhuman ailments and illnesses that we have not had a chance to discover.

9.2 What is Industry doing and how can they engage with Biodiversity?
Lucy Gaffney, Platform Development Manager, Business for Biodiversity
Ms Gaffney began by telling the members that the gap between ecology and economy needs to be
bridged and that climate change and biodiversity loss must be addressed together.
There is a strong relationship between business and nature. She explained that we need to understandand address the issues relating to how business and industry put pressure to the five drivers of
biodiversity loss. Businesses also need to understand why they should care about biodiversity. The
business case for investing in nature is that nature underpins everything. Our economic value is derived
from nature, nature is where wealth comes from, where huge business profits come from. She told themembers that we have extracted, harvested and stripped natural assets and created immense value forcompanies. But this profit does not get recycled back to where the wealth originated from. Quoting an,
as yet, unpublished European report she informed members that 92% of funding for nature restoration
comes from public funds, with just 8% from private. She told members this needs to change.
She introduced the online platform ‘Business for Nature’ which aims to have businesses assess theirimpact on nature, understand their dependence on nature, mobilise funding for investment in natureand bring nature into decision making at every level. Businesses need to transform how they engage
with nature in order to become nature positive.
In Ireland ‘Business for Nature’ are building capacity of businesses in this area by educating
businesses, by creating a scoring system to measure actions and by creating an investment-readynature remediation portfolio.
She concluded by telling the Assembly that they would like to see mandatory disclosure of naturerelated risks from businesses, that would outline their impacts and dependencies. This information isneeded to make better choices.
111

99.3 Industry Voices
Stephen Nolan, Managing Director,
UN Development Programme Financial
Services for Sustainability
Mr Nolan outlined that the United Nations
Development Program is the largest UN agency
with 17,000 staff, based in 140 offices around theworld covering 160 countries.
Mr Nolan told the Assembly that as biodiversity
is a world issue, so too is biodiversity finance.
Sustainable finance needs to unlock capital forboth OECD and emerging economies. Ireland isdoing a lot in this area including the productionof the first Sustainable Financial Roadmap due
in January 2023. This will contain 18 actions
to promote and position Ireland as a leader insustainable finance including the establishmentof a Sustainable Finance Centre of Excellence in
Ireland.
He told members it is estimated that $700bn
will be needed each year to 2030 to address
biodiversity loss – this is 1% of global GDP.
Sustainable finance is essential for this to beachieved. He told the members that climatechange had been the main focus of financepreviously. Biodiversity is a new area which there
has been a significant increase in interest in thelast two years. The World Economic Forumestimates that $44tr of global output is at risk
due to the decline in world ecosystems. But there
are also opportunities with an estimated $10trof economic activity and 395m jobs potentiallybeing made available through climate andbiodiversity transition.
Biodiversity finance needs to be nature positiveand private finance needs to provide 90% of thebiodiversity funding target. He told members that
regulatory agenda will be key with central banks
ensuring that biodiversity risks are managed. This
will be an important tool.
Mr Nolan concluded by telling members thatan Irish report on biodiversity finance and risks
and opportunities is due to be published andthat hopefully Ireland could become a leader inbiodiversity finance in the years to come.

Deirdre Ryan, Director of Origin Green
Programme, An Bord Bia
Ms Ryan outlined that An Bord Bia is the Irish
state agency responsible for marketing Irish
food and drink abroad. Irish food exports areworth over €13 billion annually - 90% of what we
produce is exported. It is an important economic
sector and one that is hugely dependent on
ecosystems while also having an impact on thoseecosystems.
Under Origin Green and assisted by Teagasc
they collaborate with 55,000 farmers onfarm sustainability assessments. A variety ofsustainability issues, from energy to animal
welfare, are covered and biodiversity is one ofthese. They provide feedback and advice as wellas providing other supports. Carbon is the main
issue and emphasised the co-benefits between
climate and biodiversity actions.
An Bord Bia provides tools in the form of
e-learning around soil health, water quality in cooperation with other state agencies. It sponsors
the Farming for Nature Awards and collaborates
on projects such as the BRIDE project but scaling
these up is the challenge.
Ms Ryan told the members they work with
300 food and drink companies to help themunderstand the impact of their activities andestablishing five-year sustainability plans setting
targets around raw material sourcing, packaging,etc.
Of the 300 company members 81 havebiodiversity targets with over 500 initiatives inplace. An Bord Bia also has a biodiversity officer
to support along that journey.
Concluding Ms Ryan told the Assembly thatsustainability is both a national and international
issue and that collaboration is critical.

112

9Shane Dineen, Environment andPlanning Manager, Fáilte Ireland (FI)Mr Dineen outlined that Ireland has a unique
tourism product which relies on nature, while
being aware that tourism can have a negative
effect on that environment. He told the membersthat tourism and biodiversity are intrinsicallylinked and outlined a variety of their initiatives andprojects to protect the environment.
FI includes environmental assessments of all its
tours and plans and projects and undertakes
associated monitoring and working with partners
and site operators on visitor management andmaster plans for key tourism sites. They also
have a National Tourism Monitoring Programme
covering 19 sites for five years looking at stresses
and risks, as well as good and bad practices
and making recommendations. Mr Dineen told
the members that in order to receive FI funding
applicants needed to demonstrate complianceand best practice with measures related tosustainable development and environmental
protection. FI is also a partner on two EU LIFE
projects where they work with farmers, local
communities and landowners in designatedareas.
The Assembly were told that FI has developed
sector guidelines to meet climate change goals
and reduce carbon footprint in areas suchas energy efficiency, better water and foodmanagement systems. This also includes abiodiversity guide for businessesto support themand enhance biodiversity.
Mr Dineen concluded by telling the membersthat collaboration is important and that tourism
must play its part. The new National Sustainable
Tourism Policy will support the National
Biodiversity Plan as well as the recommendationsof the Assembly.

Ian Talbot, Chief Executive, Chambers Ireland
Mr Talbot told the members that Chambers
Ireland has 38 affiliated chambers on theisland with over 10,000 members. They are ageographically based organisation covering a
range of sectors across their membership.
Mr Talbot told the members that something
we need to get better is implementation.
Implementation is critical.
Chambers Ireland concentrate on 5 of the
Sustainable Development Goals, particularly
climate action and sustainable cities andcommunities. He discussed a number of issues
and challenges relating to water, the need forinfrastructure, for instance flood management,
and the negative effect it can have on biodiversity,
as well as the generation of electricity. People
do things with good intentions, but that do notalways work out well for biodiversity.
98% of our economy are small and medium sizedenterprises. Chambers Ireland have produceda Sustainable Development Goals tool kit for
its members, they have Sustainable Business
Impact Awards and they work with Skillnet
Ireland.
Mr Talbot told the members that businessneeds a starting point but it takes time, is costly
and complex and there is uncertainty around
quantifying carbon emissions. It is important thatthey understand how their actions fit into thebigger picture. Business understand the urgency
but need help and encouragement to understandwhere and how their actions can fit in.
He concluded by telling members that we needto address the issue of lethargy. This could be‘stick’, ‘carrot’ or regulation. But we also need
enforcement.

113

9
Codie Preston, Science and Biology secondary school teacher andIrish Schools Sustainability Network (ISSN)15Mr Preston told the members that the provision
for nature in our education system is wholly
inadequate. We need to provide meaningful
nature education that gives students a deep
knowledge, an understanding of the causesof the problems, a positive attitude towards
nature, an ability to see nature as integral tosocial economic and health outcomes and, very
importantly, provide students with opportunity tostart to see themselves as part of nature.
He told the members that there is a dearth of knowledge in the education system about biodiversity,
both among teachers and students. Existing education policies and curricula are not adequately
addressing the issue.
There is a lack of proper training and continuous professional development for teachers. There is noprovision for creating any type of outdoor education spaces in existing schools. The primary school
curriculum has subsumed nature into science, which has meant the loss of educational tools like thecommon nature table. In secondary school nature education is pretty much non-existent except for asmall section of science and biology courses. He identified the need to educate our teachers, leaders,school leaders and principals, but by not including it in the formal system we are telling people thatthe subject is not important. He shared with members quotes from young people on their ideas andambitions to tackle both the climate and biodiversity crises.
He told members that nature should not only be taught in classrooms. School grounds can beimportant educational resources where children can engage with nature. While all future schools will
have spaces for nature there is no requirement for existing ones. These need to be resourced andfunded, with people on the ground to look after the spaces. For schools that do not have space,partnerships could be developed with community groups, government educational organizations andlocal authorities to create outdoor classrooms in our parks. He emphasised the positive role that local
authorities could play by providing outdoor education spaces in urban parks.
In terms of models, a school in Waterford has recently invested heavily in a large outdoor planting area,
are developing an environmental leadership development program and have secured funding for apart-time permaculturist.16
Mr Preston told members that nothing will change unless the Department of Education and Skills treats
the issue of biodiversity as an emergency. In 2019 the government declared a biodiversity emergency
but there is no sign that the Department sees this area as an emergency or even a high priority.
He concluded by telling members that if we embed nature into our educational system future adults
will not make the same kind of previous mistakes. We owe it to our children to give them the proper
education that they need to be able to protect the environment. We also owe it to nature.
15

ISSN is a grassroots network of teachers and students formed in recent years.

16

Permaculture can be understood as the growth of agricultural ecosystems in a self-sufficient and sustainable way.

114

9
Dr Jane Goodall, Primatologist, Anthropologist and Environmentalist,
Jane Goodall Institute
Dr Goodall joined the Assembly by remote video
link. She began by telling the members that weare part of the natural world and are dependent
on it for food, water, air. We depend on healthy
ecosystems. She first learnt of ecosystems
when she began her work with the chimpanzeesin 1960 Gombe in what is now Tanzania.
Everything was interconnected; each plant, eachanimal, no matter how large or small had a role toplay. An ecosystem is like a beautiful tapestry. If
one animal vanishes it’s like pulling a thread fromthe tapestry. If we pull enough the tapestry will
be in tatters, the ecosystem will collapse.
She discussed the main drivers of biodiversity loss. These included habitat destruction fromdevelopment, roads, dams, mining, etc. as well as the effects of agriculture, with huge areas of land
dedicated to feeding animals. There is also the pollution of our rivers, streams and land with agriculturalchemical pesticides causing damaging loss of biodiversity. Light pollution is causing insect decline and,in other parts of the world, there are hunters killing engendered wildlife. There are also invasive species
and climate change.
Dr Goodall drew particular attention to the causal issue of poverty. By way of example she spoke
about returning to Tanzania to find the hills denuded of what had previously been lush forest, as people
destroyed the habitat in order to live. She told the members that we need to find ways for people livingin these areas to earn money by other means or we will have no hope.
Turning to more hopeful considerations she gave an example of community led conservation inwhich non-specialists work with communities to assist them to meeting their needs. Activities include
restoring fertility to the land and working to promote health, education, micro-finance and familyplanning. As a result of this work nature has been transformed. The resilience of nature is our best
hope. Through projects like this it becomes clear that protecting the environment is not just for wildlife,
it is also for their future. This community led conservation work is now in over 100 villages in Tanzania
and in 6 countries.
Dr Goodall told the assembly of species that have been brought from the brink of extinction, as wellas transformative rewilding projects. However, she warned about people working in narrow areas
and focusing on solving only their own problems. She cited renewable energy projects damaging
biodiversity and talked about having to retrofit solutions to reduce deaths of bird and bats. She alsostressed the importance of providing biodiversity in our cities, and especially for those in inner cities, sothat they can get the physical and mental benefits of interacting with nature.
She concluded by saying that her greatest reason for hope was young people. Once young people
understand something and are empowered to undertake action they can and do change the world.
She told the members about the impact of the present and past members of the ‘Roots and Shoots’
organisation that she established in 1991 and is now in 66 countries. The young generation are ourhope by what they do now, but also what they will do when they become adults. That is the hope forthe future. And we need hope.

115

Appendices116Appendix 1: Invitation letter to households to participate in the
Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss117

Appendix 2: Details of the submissions process/public consultation
A public consultation process was launched in April 2022. This enabled members of the public, as well
as stakeholder groups and representative organisations, to make written submissions to the Citizens’
Assembly.
The process ran between April and November 2022, during which time 647 valid submissions, from
Ireland and around the world, were received. This included 508 submissions from individual membersof the general public and 139 submissions from representative organisations and stakeholder groups.
Members of the Assembly were provided access to each submission and, in the majority of cases abrief summary of the submission was provided, allowing members to review each submission as soon
as it was available.
All valid submissions were subsequently published on the website and remain available to view online
on www.citizensassembly.ie.

118

Appendix 3: Results of the ballots on recommendations
The results of the in-person vote taken on 27 November 2022 and the e-voting undertaken
23 - 30 January 2023 are shared below. Recommendations agreed by consensus at meetings are
not recorded here. In cases where results do not tally to exactly 100% this is due to the rounding off ofdecimal points and does not materially affect the result.
SupportDo notsupportNo
response

22

There should be a senior ministerial position, withan associated department, with responsibility forbiodiversity.

83%

16%

1%

23

There should be a permanent, cross-party Standing
Oireachtas Committee on Biodiversity Loss, which
will consider and respond to the recommendationsof this Assembly, within 6 to 12 months.

92%

7%

1%

24

There should be a new national independentagency to act as a centralised biodiversity
coordinating structure to:

96%

4%

0%

Strategic Approach to Biodiversity Loss

28i.

(a) Coordinate government departments intheir biodiversity-related actions;

89%

n/a

11%

i.

(b) Co-ordinate government policy and ensure
the coherence of those policies;

94%

n/a

6%

ii. Coordinate budgets related to biodiversity
actions;

78%

n/a

22%

iii. Drive consultation around biodiversity actions;

72%

n/a

28%

iv. Oversee and coordinate enforcement
organisations;

85%

n/a

15%

v. Implement, monitor and report biodiversity
actions transparently;

89%

n/a

11%

vi. Oversee education and public engagement
related to biodiversity;

89%

n/a

11%

vii. Oversee and coordinate research and datacollection;

91%

n/a

9%

viii. Act as a point of contact for members of the
public and industry to liaise with supports
related to biodiversity conservation andrestoration;

89%

n/a

11%

ix. Act in alignment with the Climate Change
Advisory Council.

80%

n/a

20%

x. Set up an Emergency Task Force

70%

n/a

30%

All citizens should be empowered with ‘legal
standing’ to protect nature and biodiversity in court.

77%

21%

2%
119

Support

Do notsupportNo
response

83%

17%

0%

31 a.

Human substantive environmental rights, e.g. aright to a clean, healthy, safe environment; a rightto a stable and healthy climate; rights of future
generations to these or other environmental right.

82%

1%

17%

31 b.

Human procedural environmental rights, e.g. theAarhus rights regarding access to environmental
information, public participation in environmental
decision-making and justice in environmental
matters

77%

5%

18%

31 c.

Substantive rights of nature, recognising nature asa holder of legal rights, comparable to companies
or people e.g. to exist, flourish/perpetuate andrestoration if degraded; not to be polluted/harmed/
degraded.

74%

9%

17%

78%

4%

18%

The Constitution
31

There should be a referendum of the people toamend the Constitution with a view to protecting
biodiversity.
The proposal to amend the Constitution should include:

31 d.

Procedural rights of nature, e.g. to be a party inadministrative decision-making, litigation, etc.
where rights are impacted/likely to be impacted.

120

Support

Do notsupportNo
response

34

Ireland’s Well-being Framework should be
modified so that it more accurately measureseconomic, social and environmental progressin Ireland, with the metrics reported alongside
GDP as an indication of how well Ireland is doing
and be given a strong role in shaping policy andinforming the annual budgetary process.

94%

4%

2%

35

There must be a comprehensive review of current
and future taxation and levy policies, regulations,and incentives to assess their impact on
biodiversity.

92%

5%

4%

New sector-specific levies/charges on harmful
imports must be introduced and ringfenced forbiodiversity.

83%

13%

4%

43 i.

New sector-specific levies/charges on agricultural
exports must be introduced and ringfenced forbiodiversity.

66%

31%

2%

43 ii.

New sector-specific levies/charges on retailers
must be introduced and ringfenced for biodiversity.

65%

31%

4%

SupportDo notsupportNo
response

95%

5%

0%

SupportDo notsupportNo
response

95%

4%

1%

Resourcing the State’s Approach to the
Biodiversity Crisis

43

Accountability & Compliance in Biodiversity

46

All penalties for any breach of pollution orenvironmental legislation/regulations should be
increased to meaningful economic levels reflecting
all damage caused, plus enforcement andrestoration costs, with criminal sanction where
necessary.

Public Engagement, Education & Awareness

59

There should be mandatory and ongoingbiodiversity training provided for any civil or public
servant whose work impacts on wildlife andbiodiversity.

121Support

Do notsupportNo
response

74

Current State policy on the management of
biodiversity on agricultural lands is not sufficientand requires fundamental review and change tosupport and incentivise farmers and landowners toprotect and restore biodiversity.

99%

0%

1%

75

The Government must ensure that Ireland’s foodproduction is in line with commitments to theAgenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, theParis Agreement, the EU Green Deal and current
legal obligations to protect biodiversity, genetic
resources (e.g. seed diversity) and water quality.
It must phase out all environmentally harmful
subsidies in the agricultural and food sector.

90%

9%

1%

76

Government departments, State and Semi Stateagencies shall ensure their work is done in a way
which ensures collaborative planning, consultationin decision-making, and implementation with
farmers, local authorities and community groups.
This must be underpinned by acknowledgementthat there is a need for local responses to local
environments. (The Burren Programme and the
BRIDE projects provide potential templates.)Community led, peer-to-peer farming initiatives
must maintain their community-led ethos once
they are rolled out nationwide.

99%

0%

1%

77

Biodiversity targets in national schemes (i.e.
CAP/ACRES) must be made significantly more
ambitious, detailed and focused on the medium tolong-term. Funding must be increased to support
this ambition.

91%

6%

2%

78

Public incentives and payments for farmers must
not restrict them in their ambition to make change
for the benefit of biodiversity.
All biodiversity incentives for farmers shall be
results-based over the whole farm, with farmers
who protect and enhance biodiversity rewarded
and paid for the ecosystem services they
contribute.

98%

1%

1%

79

Increased access to agri-environmental andpayments-on-results schemes must be available
to all farmers with commensurate funding.

96%

2%

1%

80

The State must support community leadership,
and peer-to-peer support in order to shareknowledge and assist local farmers andcommunities to understand and replicate goodbiodiversity practice.

98%

0%

2%

Agriculture

122

81

The State must further subsidise and incentivise
organic farming and locally grown produce.
Sufficient resources must be deployed to support
an ambitious implementation of Ireland’s Strategy
for the Development of the Organic Sector for theperiod 2019 to 2025, to ensure a more supportive
environment for the development of organic foodand farming in Ireland, and for subsequent policies
relating to the medium to long-term developmentof the sector.

91%

9%

0%

82

Bord Bia must significantly increase the promotionof the organic farming sector in Ireland and actions
supporting the Farm to Fork strategy.

89%

9%

2%

83

People must be encouraged to consume a more
plant-based diet.

60%

39%

1%

84

Biodiversity awareness and education training
programmes need to be instigated and improved
across the agriculture sector, including for farmers,
advisors, policy makers, food processors andretailers.

96%

1%

2%

85

The Green Cert must be adapted by increasing
the proportion of credits for sustainable farming.
Modules should include the identification andmanagement of nature/biodiversity features on
farmland, combining latest scientific informationand traditional knowledge, recognising andpreserving skills built by generations of farmers.

98%

1%

1%

86

Offer incentives through agri-environment
schemes to farmers that achieve high soil quality
status, either from the start of the monitoring
programme or as a result of their employing
remedial measures.

96%

0%

4%

87

In line with EU Soils Strategy, a National Centre forSoil Science must be established based on upto-date technology where soil testing of physical,
chemical and biological properties of soil is
subsidized for farmers.

96%

4%

0%

88

The State must require sufficient informationon commodity labelling and menus to improve
consumer understanding of the origin of their foodand the impact of their choices on biodiversity/
environment.

83%

16%

1%

89

More farms and farmers must be encouraged andrewarded for adopting the Silvopasture approach
to farming – planting native deciduous trees inamongst pasture lands.

96%

2%

1%

90

Encourage use of multi-species mixtures andphase out use of monoculture grass seed
mixtures.

98%

0%

2%
123

Support

Do notsupportNo
response91

The management of our freshwater systems
requires immediate action. It requires increased
level of ambition, increased resources for Water
Framework Directive implementation (andtherefore aquatic biodiversity protection andmitigation), a focus on water quality and aquatic
biodiversity outcomes, clarity on roles andresponsibilities and accountability for achievementof the outcomes.

98%

1%

1%

92

The State must provide a single body to overseeand co-ordinate the many relevant bodies thatmanage, implement, and enforce legislation andpolicies relevant to freshwater.

94%

5%

1%

93

There must be urgent increases in investment
by Irish Water to build new, and improveexisting, water treatment plants to prevent theunacceptable discharge of raw or partially treatedsewage into any fresh or marine waters. The
current timelines and targets are inadequate.

100%

0%

0%

94

The management of water catchment areas must
be greatly improved, with assessments of water
quality to be updated regularly to guide action on
restoring water quality.

99%

0%

1%

95

Riparian buffer zones, related to agriculture,
forestry, industry and extractive processes andurban development, must be expanded andtake into account local conditions to prevent
nutrient and sediment run-off. Schemes must be
put in place to incentivise landowners to protect
waterways, with incremental subsidies dependingon the width and quality of buffer zones.

96%

4%

0%

96

Local and other relevant authorities must be held
responsible for maintaining and improving theconditions of rivers in their areas, working witheach other and State agencies, such as OPW,
Coillte, the Department of Agriculture, Food andthe Marine, Inland Fisheries, industry, farmers,
private landowners, community groups etc.
Furthermore, local authorities and landowners
must maintain the highest standards to riparianzones along the rivers in their areas.

100%

0%

0%

97

It is imperative that penalties for polluting
freshwater are significantly increased andenforcement considerably improved.

96%

4%

0%

Freshwater

124

98

Farmers must have access to continuous training
and up to date research in actions and land
management practices that protect freshwater
biodiversity.

99

The State must increase support for community
groups and NGOs that are working on key
projects to improve freshwater systems – e.g.
support for Irish Rivers Trusts, Group Water
Schemes, angling and community groups.

100

The 1945 Arterial Drainage Act is no longer fit for
purpose and must be reviewed and updated inorder to take proper account of biodiversity andthe climate crisis.

99%

0%

1%

95%

4%

1%

98%

1%

1%

101

Nature-based solutions must be included inState and community programmes to tackle
flood management and should include whole ofcatchment area hydromorphology planning andrestoration.

99%

0%

1%

102

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA),
supported by Inland Fisheries Ireland and an
expert group, must conduct a complete analysis
and survey of all Catchment areas to develop a
National Hydromorphology Plan.

98%

1%

1%

103

Motorway attenuation pools must be more widelyused and incorporate the use of biodiverse
wetlands. The forestry and extractive industries
must have the highest standards of attenuation
pools and sediment traps applied to their drainage
activities.

95%

2%

2%

104

Soil sealing poses a growing threat to ourwaterways and hydromorphology through surface
water run-off. New regulations must be developed
to limit the permissible area of soil sealing aroundall new buildings and other developments that are
subject to planning. All other surface finishes must
be made of permeable surfaces.

98%

2%

0%

125

Support

Do notsupportNo
response105

The State shall designate and effectively manage
an ambitious network of Marine Protection Areas,in line with EU targets of 30% of Ireland’s Maritime
Area, by 2030.

96%

2%

1%

106

The State shall create a National Marine
Biodiversity Coordination Body to have
responsibility for the implementation of Marine
Protected Areas, the achievement of Good
Environmental Status, and wider marine
conservation and restoration initiatives.

95%

4%

1%

107

The State must implement ambitious marine
conservation measures under the Marine
Strategy Framework Directive to ensure ‘Good
Environmental Status’ for Ireland’s seas.

96%

2%

1%

108

A proportion of funds raised by the Statethrough fines and levies for activity in the marine
environment must be used for the protection andrestoration of marine biodiversity.

95%

2%

2%

109

The State must act to ensure fish stocks in
Irish waters are well managed through quotas,
monitoring and no fish zones, supporting income
transition for fishers who will need to change
their way of earning as policies on Marine
Protected Areas and offshore energy evolve, forthe necessary conservation and restoration of
biodiversity.

95%

4%

1%

110

As a matter of urgency, the State must increase
actions and legislation to considerably reduce
single use plastics and microplastics to minimise
pollution within its waters and along its shores.

98%

2%

0%

111

The siting, development and construction ofenergy generation at sea (both pylon and floating)must be done in close collaboration with thefishing community and relevant marine biodiversity
authorities.

98%

1%

1%

112

All enterprise involved in all marine extraction or
exploration must have a strict biodiversity net gain
clause attached to their development permission
and must be responsible for the ongoing andfuture management and enhancement of thebiodiversity of their sites.

95%

5%

0%

Marine & Coastal Environments

126

Support

Do notsupportNo
response113

An updated National Peatland Action Plan must
be developed with clear, measurable, realistic andtimed goals and sufficient funding to protect andrestore peatlands.

96%

2%

1%

114

The cessation of turf-cutting on protectedareas must be fully implemented and enforced.
To facilitate a true ‘just transition’, the State
must provide adequate financial assistanceto offer viable alternatives to people currently
predominantly reliant on peat for heating theirhomes.

87%

11%

2%

115

The State must promote community engagement
and wider awareness of the value of peatland
restoration for nature and culture.

96%

2%

1%

116

The remits of Bord Na Móna & Coillte must eachbe reviewed to include a focus on Peatland
restoration and rehabilitation projects, withtargeted outcomes on biodiversity conservation.
The results of these outcomes must be freely
available and published annually.

96%

2%

1%

95%

5%

0%

118

Develop a cross-agency response team to review
practices of prescribed burning and address
issues around implementation of guidance andrecommendations to stop illegal burning

93%

6%

1%

119

Encourage and incentivise peatland owners
to engage in the active protection of peatland
biodiversity through appropriate management
and restoration activities.

96%

1%

2%

Peatlands

117

All enterprise involved in the harnessing of
renewable energy from or on all peatland
must have a strict biodiversity net gain clauseattached to their development permission
and must be responsible for the ongoing andfuture management and enhancement of thebiodiversity of their sites.

127

Support

Do notsupportNo
response

120

There is a conflict of interest between businessaims and corporate responsibility, particularly forState agencies. The State must fundamentally
reassess the constitution, goals and operations of
Coillte and the 1988 Forestry Act (as amended).
This reassessment must ensure biodiversity
protection and positive eco-system services arecore objectives for Coillte, alongside providing
higher quality timber, meaningful employment andbenefits to the community.

98%

1%

1%

121

State-owned woodlands should be recognised
and managed as a strategic, long-term national
asset for the benefit of the common good.

100%

0%

0%

122

Afforestation requires long-term goals andtimelines. The State must legislate and provide
funding for long-term investments in forestry,
with strategic and ambitious emphasis on native
woodlands. In addition, the State must ensure its
afforestation strategy is not negatively impacting
on biodiversity by establishing an effective
monitoring system for the Forestry Programme.

99%

0%

1%

123

A new national strategy for the protection,
maintenance, restoration and expansionof Ireland’s network of hedgerows must be
developed urgently. Existing legislation andregulations regarding hedgerows must be
reviewed, strengthened and fully enforced, with
due regard to public safety. Sufficient resultsbased incentives must be made available tosupport all aspects of their proper management.
In particular, the new CAP schemes should
recognize and reward good hedgerow quality.

100%

0%

0%

124

Forests currently planted and those alreadyfelled on peatlands are a significant and historic
problem. The State should remedy this issue
promptly and on a significant scale.

91%

6%

2%

125

The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries andthe Marine must implement incentives for State,
Semi State and commercial bodies to establish
more nurseries for the cultivation of indigenous
hedgerow species and indigenous broadleaf tree
species.

99%

0%

1%

126

A significant proportion of profit earned through
Coillte’s commercial activities should be
ringfenced and re-invested directly back into
biodiverse forestry initiatives.

93%

5%

2%

Forestry, Woodlands and Hedgerows

128

The State must plan for appropriate felling
management, including provision for continuous
cover to encourage a more biodiverse andsustainable mixed forestry management model.

99%

1%

0%

The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and theMarine must ensure that licensing requires siteby-site ecological assessments to ensure thatbiodiversity is not negatively impacted both within
and outside protected sites.

93%

6%

1%

129

The use of pesticides in public and private
forestry is to be reduced by at least 50%.

93%

6%

1%

130

Hedge management courses and certification
should be reintroduced and it should be arequirement that all hedge cutting contractors
and their employees complete such courses, andbe licenced.

93%

6%

1%

SupportDo notsupportNo
response131

The designated sites and species are among ourmost important cultural, heritage, and biodiversity
resources and their management needs to be
sufficiently resourced to meet our EU obligations.

98%

1%

1%

132

The National Parks and Wildlife Service and otherrelevant agencies must be provided with targetedfunding to provide sufficient resources and staff
to manage designated sites and protect species,
produce and implement management plans,
enforce protections for designated sites on landand sea.

98%

1%

1%

133

Protected sites do not exist in isolation. These
ecosystems require connectivity with areas
outside these sites, with links between protectedsites. These connections and links need to beconsidered, protected and improved in local
authority planning and other activities.

98%

2%

0%

134

Hunting open season order list must be reviewed
regularly to ensure alignment with the endangered
species list.

93%

6%

1%

127

128

Protected sites and species

129

Invasive Species

SupportDo notsupportNo
response135

The management of invasive species needs to be
carried out on an all-Island basis.

96%

4%

0%

136

Biosecurity must be increased at all points ofentry to the country, in line with best international
practice.

95%

4%

1%

137

The State must provide funding, educationand infrastructural supports to engage local
community groups in appropriately managing
invasive species, which negatively impact native
habitats and species.

96%

2%

1%

138

The State must produce a multi-agency National
Invasive Species Plan to manage, monitor andcollate information on the distribution of invasive
species across the country. This should be
used for coordinated control programmes andcommunity awareness campaigns.

98%

1%

1%

139

The State must introduce effective population
controls regarding invasive animal species, suchas non-native deer and mink.

95%

4%

1%

140

The State must act immediately to put a timelineon the phasing out of, and eventual ban of, thesale of invasive species, e.g. Cherry Laurel.

89%

9%

2%

141

Regulations for the importation of recreational
wildlife, classed as invasive species, must be
reviewed.

96%

4%

0%

142

Schemes to incentivise people to buy nativeplants, shrubs and trees, including native fruiting
trees and shrubs, to support garden biodiversity
over non-native species should be devised andencouraged.

90%

6%

4%

SupportDo notsupportNo
response

98%

2%

0%

Urban & Built Environment

143

The State must reform and update the planningand building regulations and legislation to better
consider biodiversity in all new developments,
with specific evidence-based and locally relevant
biodiversity and environmental measures (e.g.
inclusion of nesting bricks, restriction of artificial
grass, green planting, corridors, sand and water
etc).

130

144

Planning policy must be updated to require all
new developments to have a significant net-gain
for the environment and biodiversity.

95%

4%

1%

145

In line with international best practice, theState must increase mandatory requirements
for a percentage of green spaces that support
biodiversity in urban areas.

95%

2%

2%

146

Local authorities must raise the status ofbiodiversity to ensure that this is addressedand championed at the highest level in theorganisation.

95%

1%

4%

147

The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS),
as well as bodies prescribed in legislation withregard to biodiversity and planning, including An
Taisce, should be properly funded and resourced
to effectively carry out their planning anddevelopment roles.

95%

4%

1%

148

The State must utilise public spaces, such as
bus shelters and roofs, to create green corridors,
green walls/roofs etc., to support pollinators andpromote biodiversity.

96%

2%

1%

149

Authorities must incorporate ecological expertisein decision-making regarding planning.

96%

2%

1%

150

All Environmental Impact Assessments andReports, and Appropriate Assessments andNatura Impact Statements must automatically belodged with the National Biodiversity Data Centre
so the data and information can be stored andmade publicly accessible, with sufficient funding
provided for such action.

98%

1%

1%

151

Each Local Authority must include a GreenInfrastructure Strategy in County/City
Development Plans which includes corridors
between urban and rural biodiverse habitats,creation of new biodiverse spaces, retrofittingof existing spaces and restoration of degradedbiodiversity.

99%

0%

1%

152

The State must introduce tax incentives andgrants for capital investment in retrofitting existingbuildings with biodiverse initiatives (roof gardens,vertical gardens etc.).

92%

6%

2%

131

153

The State must review An Bord Pleanála andlocal authority legislation and practices to takefull cognisance of the Aarhus Convention, create
more transparency, and grant citizens greater
access to information and inclusion in decisionmaking related to environmental issues inplanning.

90%

7%

2%

98%

1%

1%

SupportDo notsupportNo
response

157

Ireland’s tourism industry is dependent on theprotection and good status of the environment
and important biodiversity sites are often highamenity sites. The promotion of eco-tourism
and amenities should therefore be consistent
with biodiversity conservation and visitors
should be managed to ensure that biodiversity
is not damaged. Opportunities to include
biodiverse positive areas and projects should
be encouraged as an additional tool within theoverall promotion of Ireland’s tourism industry.

96%

4%

0%

159

All large businesses and financial organisations
must develop a mandatory assessment anddisclosure process of harmful impacts tobiodiversity, with a mandated role (similar to a
Health and Safety or Well-being officer).

92%

6%

2%

154

As part of the new National Biodiversity Plan,
relevant Government departments and agencies
must publish central advice for local authorities
on incorporating nature based solutions andecological features into new developments,
ecosystem restoration, green infrastructure
and biodiversity, addressing pollution issues(chemical, light, etc.), reinforcement and/or
offsetting that can be linked to achieving local
and national biodiversity objectives that would
be identified in development plans and local areaplans.

Industry, Business and Tourism

132

Appendix 4: Guidance for presenters on presenting to a lay audience
Presenting to the AssemblyThank you for agreeing to present to Ireland’s Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss. As with all othernational Citizens’ Assemblies, the work of this group has the potential to influence changes to policy
and practices on a national level.
The Assembly is made up of 99 members from all across Ireland and from a wide variety ofbackgrounds. In order to facilitate the Assembly in their work coming up with and presenting theirrecommendations to the Oireachtas (Irish parliament), an outline of facts and issues should be provided
to them with the intent of stimulating purposeful discussions. Considering the breadth and scope of
the work of this Assembly on biodiversity loss, and that this is a non-specialist audience volunteering
their time, we wanted to compile some suggestions to ensure your presentation makes a meaningful
contribution to the considerations of the group. Should you be compiling additional documentation orvideo content to accompany your presentation, the same points should be relevant.
__________________________
1. Get to the big picture firstAs researchers, we often lay out all of the details and wait until the end of a paper or presentation to
discuss the implications. For this audience, it may be more appropriate to start with the relevance ofthe presentation to the work of the Assembly and then go into the details.
2. Communicate only essential information
Allow yourself to take more time per point than you would with your peers. Eliminating all but themost essential pieces of your talk will give you space to unpack concepts that are unfamiliar to thisaudience.
You may wish to consider the “Three Ms of Messaging” recommended by the AAAS (American
Association of Advanced Studies) to keep your message: memorable, meaningful and miniature.
The AAAS also suggest considering a three-point structure to a presentation to organise yourmessage around. You may therefore wish to consider: What are the three things you want youraudience to remember and respond to?
3. Use accessible language
We’re often used to presenting to audiences where specialised terms and acronyms are useful. For
non-specialist audiences, such as that of the Assembly, the content needs to be communicatedin different ways, to make sure the audience can meaningfully engage with the information. Avoid
jargon and acronyms wherever possible and don’t be afraid to repeat important concepts or takeaway messages multiple times using different phrasings or approaches.
This website may be useful for translating some technical terms: https://climatejargonbuster.ie/
4. Relate the content to your audience
Using metaphors, analogies and examples may help the Assembly members put the information
into a context that is familiar and relatable to their work in the Assembly.
5. Minimise the content on your slides
For this audience, a high-level overview of information or findings is most relevant. Communicating
in a visual way with infographics, graphs, charts or images will be impactful and memorable.
133

Further reading:•https://www.aaas.org/resources/communication-toolkit/communication-fundamentals•

https://questproject.eu/how-to-improve-science-communication-consider-these-12-guiding
principles/•

https://hbr.org/2016/09/how-experts-can-help-a-general-audience-understand-their-ideas•

https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/gradhacker/communicating-research-general-audience

134
134

Appendix 5: Photo Credits
Sincere thanks to the following contributors whose images bring this report to life. Photos not credited
here are credited to the Citizens’ Assembly.

Page

Locationon page

CreditPage

CreditCover

Far right

Padraic Fogarty

Page 66

Mike Brown, NPWS

Cover

Top

Art O'Leary

Page 67

Dr Liam Lysaght

Cover

SecondRobert Lawlessfrom bottom

Page 70

Tim Carey

Page 71

Joseph Salah

Page 72

Dr Andy Bleasdale

Page 76

Padraic Fogarty

Page 81

Dr James Moran

Page 82

Dr James Moran

Page 83

Dr James Moran

Page 86

Robert Lawless

Page 87

Padraic Fogarty

Page 92

Padraic Fogarty

Page 93

Prof. Mary Kelly-Quinn

Page 94

Prof. Mary Kelly-Quinn

Page 95

Robert Lawless

Page 96

Dr Bernadette White

Page 96

Dr Bernadette White

Page 98

Prof. Ian Montgomery

Page 102

Dr James Moran

Page 103

Tim Carey

Page 104

iStock.com/vladCa

Page 106

Art O'Leary

Page 12

Padraic Fogarty

Page 21Dan Dwyer

Page 23 Top

Dan Dwyer

Page 23 Bottom left

Dan Dwyer

Page 23 Bottom right Dr Aoibhinn NíShúilleabháin
Page 25

Prof. Tasman Crowe

Page 26

Ciaran Duggan

Page 27 Bottom left

Robert Lawless

Page 27 Bottom right Robert Lawless
Page 28

Robert Lawless

Page 29

Mike Brown, NPWS

Page 32

Tina Claffey

Page 33

Padraic Fogarty

Page 42

Padraic Fogarty

Page 50 Bottom left

Ann Kavanagh

Page 50 Bottom right Ann Kavanagh
Page 54

Padraic Fogarty

Page 56

Dr Ferdia Marnell,
NPWS

Page 57

Dr James Moran

Page 107

Art O'Leary

Page 58

Prof. Jane Stout

Page 110

Padraic Fogarty

Page 64

Padraic Fogarty

Page 116

Padraic Fogarty
135
135

Published by the Citizens’ Assembly
www.citizensassembly.ie

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