Following the launch of the report from the Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss yesterday (Wednesday, April 5), Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Simon Coveney has said that biodiversity is “just another challenge that we need to face”.
Speaking to journalists at the opening of Tirlán’s new headquarters and collaboration hub in Kilkenny today (Thursday, April 6), the minister gave his initial reaction to the recommendations contained in the report.
“The one thing I would say to farmers and the food industry is we can’t ignore challenges around biodiversity, just like we can’t ignore climate change. If we do, we’ll be forced to change in a way we haven’t anticipated or planned for,” Minister Coveney commented.
“So the whole point of having a Citizens’ Assembly here is to tease through all of the issues and to take our time doing that and to try and map out how the agriculture sector, but also other sectors in Ireland, need to respond to protect biodiversity.”
One of the recommendations in yesterday’s report was to place a levy on certain agricultural exports, something that Minister Coveney said he would not be in favour of.
However, he insisted that biodiversity loss is an issue that needed to be addressed.
“We have an obligation to our children here to make sure that we leave our land, our countryside, and nature in a way that we can stand over, and that means protecting biodiversity the best we can,” he said.
He also said that moves to protect biodiversity need to be balanced against ensuring that farming and agriculture can “continue to thrive in the future”.
“This is just another challenge that we need to face, and that government will work with farm organisations and farm families on to plan for and manage, and we’ll provide a supportive environment to do that,” the minister added.
He went on to say: “Nothing is going to be rushed here. And just like when we have to take on other challenges, I think the Citizens’ Assembly format is a good way to tease through the issues in an open and transparent way.
“Obviously, a report will come to government and we’ll have to make decisions on the back of that.
“This is a government that supports farm families, wants to see commercial farming thrive, but also wants to work with farm families to make sure, from a nature prospective, their practices are sustainable as well,” Minister Coveney remarked.