Resourcing

Need to ensure appropriate resourcing and skills across Government Departments and state bodies

Implementation

-Need for clear, defined responsibility for stakeholders assigned roles and actions across the Plan
-Need for a legal basis to secure the implementation of the Plan
-Promote useful sharing of information and enable Government departments to effectively communicate with the public around progress with the Plan

Data

-Ensuring that biodiversity-related data is accessible, consolidating disparate data into a centralised repository
-Need for standardisation and coherence across data collection efforts
-Need to support citizen science, recognising the invaluable role that voluntary recording and monitoring schemes play in recording data
-Need to identify and address the root causes of biodiversity loss in Ireland

Local Authorities and Biodiversity

-Ensuring that all local authorities have access to a biodiversity officer and the expertise necessary for biodiversity monitoring and enforcement

Rural Biodiversity and Farming

-Ensuring that biodiversity data collected by farmers is captured and utilised
-Ensuring that farmers are adequately compensated / remunerated for managing their land to support biodiversity
-Revising and enhancing the viability of farm forestry

Biodiversity and Planning

-The role of the planning process in safeguarding biodiversity
-Supporting best practice to ensure positive outcomes for biodiversity

Conservation

-Need for further focus on habitats and species that lie outside of protected sites

Actions relating to monitoring and evaluation

-By 2023, a progress tracker for the NBAP is established

-By 2023, and in each year thereafter, relevant entities report on their progress against this Plan

Each Objective contains a series of Outcomes that describe the changes that will occur if Actions are achieved:
• Each action has an associated target, which is a time-bound description of what the action aims to achieve.
• The actions are interventions that will contribute to the achievement of the outcomes.

• Each action has a designated owner(s).
• Each action has a measurable indicator(s) that will allow for the monitoring of progress.

Notes

The NBF will conduct an independent review of the Biodiversity Financial Needs Assessment (by 2024)

By 2026, OPW has implemented its Biodiversity Action Strategy in full (including Appointment of a Biodiversity Officer)

DHLGH will work with Local Authorities on establishing a Biodiversity Officer Programme with a dedicated Biodiversity Officer in each Local Authority and dedicated guidance on their role by 2026

All Local Authorities will have a Biodiversity Action Plan in place by end of 2026

By 2027, measures for biodiversity implemented under the Common Agricultural Policy are monitored for their impact and efficacy

By 2023, a mechanism for matching private sector resources with appropriate biodiversity projects is established (Business for Biodiversity platform)

DHLGH will publish detailed site specific conservation objectives for all SACs and SPAs

By 2025, DHLGH has reviewed its licensing and consent system to facilitate sustainable activities within Natura 2000 sites

DHLGH will publish and implement Species Action or Threat Response Plans with population targets for threatened and endangered species that are in Unfavourable status or have declining trends

DHLGH with relevant stakeholders will identify areas that will be pledged as protected areas following the criteria laid out under the EU Biodiversity Strategy (by end of 2023)

DAFM and Teagasc will develop and implement realistic and widely applicable results based agrienvironmental climate measures (AECM) as part of Ireland’s CAP SP that include significant habitat maintenance and restoration measures

In line with the EU Biodiversity Strategy, the use and risk of pesticides is reduced by 50% by 2030

Measures under the National Peatlands Strategy are implemented by 2025 and updated by 2026, and an updated Bord na Mona Biodiversity Action Plan is published by end of 2023

By 2024, Ireland’s National Forest Strategy and Forestry Programme has identified clear actions to enhance biodiversity

OPW will work with relevant authorities to ensure that Flood Risk Management planning and associated SEA, EIA and AA, minimises loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services through policies to promote more catchmentwide and non-structural flood risk management measures (by 2027)

OPW will ensure that all significant drainage (arterial drainage), including both initial drainage and maintenance drainage will be assessed for its implications for biodiversity, particularly for wetlands (by 2027)

The OPW, in coordination with other relevant stakeholders, will continue to enhance its knowledge and capacity with regards to Nature-based Solutions for Catchment Management (NBS-CM) and will assess the potential NBSCM as part of the development of the future flood relief schemes (by 2027)

OPW will review existing flood relief schemes, identifying opportunities for retrofit of biodiversity enhancement measures, and developing biodiversity good practice from the lessons learned into guidance for new schemes (by 2027)

Implementation of all actions of the Nitrates Action Plan by December 2025 – DAFM will ensure that Ireland’s CAP SP will provide circular and localised nutrient management and reduce loss of Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and soil to the aquatic environment, taking account of nature-based solutions

Irish Water will implement its Water Services Strategic Plan (2015-2040), in particular its objective to protect and enhance the environment, together with its Biodiversity Action Plan

DHLGH and LAWPRO will ensure that high status water bodies are effectively protected and restored via the Blue Dot Catchments Programme (2022-2027) – High status catchment delineation and prioritisation for protection measures; Output from national a monitoring system; Centralised GIS database or activities database is established and operational

DHLGH will develop an Action Plan to urgently protect 3110 Oligotrophic Lake Habitat that was assessed as having a Bad Conservation Status as part of Article 17 Reporting 2019

DHLGH, Inland Fisheries Ireland, OPW and other relevant bodies will explore the restoration of 300 km or rivers to a free-flowing state in line with the EU Biodiversity Strategy 2030

By 2026, Ireland is meeting all requirements for its transitional, coastal, and marine environment under the Water Framework Directive (WFD) and the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), thereby achieving and maintaining High or Good Ecological Status and Good Environmental Status, respectively

DAFM, DHLGH and other relevant stakeholders will implement measures to ensure that there are no significant adverse effects from marine fisheries and aquaculture in and adjacent to EU Natura 2000 sites

DHLGH will establish an invasive alien species (IAS) unit to expedite implementation of the legislative and policy framework, including specific resources for enforcement

DHLGH in collaboration with all relevant stakeholders, will resource and implement on-the-ground actions to remove stands of invasive species from native woodlands and peatlands within Protected Areas and National Parks

By 2023, there is significant progress to restore and rewet raised bog protected areas, as set out in the National Raised Bog Special Areas of Conservation Management Plan 2017-2022 and Ireland’s 2021 Climate Action Plan

By 2027, OPW has made all relevant biodiversity datasets publicly available

By 2024 biodiversity monitoring programmes are sufficiently robust to detect changes over time and fulfil our national, regional and global reporting obligations

By 2023 the National Land Cover Map will be published

Habitat biodiversity assessments are conducted on all National Farm Survey (NFS) farms by 2030

By 2027, alignment is achieved between relevant EU LIFE projects that work separately