Fine Gael senator Aisling Dolan has urged Minister of State with responsibility for land use and biodiversity Pippa Hackett to fund local authorities to ensure biodiversity is protected.

She was speaking in the Seanad this week (November 5) during a discussion on a Private Members’ Bill (PMB) which sought to have the Seanad recognise the Dáil’s declaration of a climate and biodiversity emergency.

“Like the minister herself, I also come from a farming background and I understand; I’ve grown up on a farm; I’ve worked on a farm; I got the Green Cert,” said senator Dolan.

“I suppose the amount of information and research that has been done in the last 10 to 20 years that shows us the impact in terms of the loss of wildlife and habitats – it is shocking.

The importance of maintaining wildlife and increasing what we have is crucial. I do believe the local authorities have a crucial role here in doing that.

Funding for biodiversity

The Roscommon-Galway senator added: “I would ask the minister to consider extra resources for very much under-funded, under-resourced environmental sections within each of the local authorities.

“Individuals and community groups are working together to actually protect the environment that they live in. We need to make sure that they’re supported in doing that.”

“As somebody who comes from a farming background, I take on board very the generational aspect for farmers; bringing farmers with us.

I come from an area where you would have suckler farmers; you would have a lot of small farms. The importance of off-farm income is crucial. A lot of this comes from eco-tourism.

“Farmers are leading in making sure we meet our requirements on a European level. I would like the minister to take into account the work that farmers are doing in leading the charge and that also we would look to really fund our local authorities,” the senator concluded.