Ten new biodiversity officers are to be appointed to advise local authorities on measures which will enhance nature and to draw up plans on the implementation new conservation measures in their respective areas.

Each officer is to establish a county biodiversity forum, with the programme being delivered by the Heritage Council and the County and City Management Association.

The move comes as the Department plans on having a biodiversity officer in all counties in three years’ time, with a total of 29 biodiversity officers in place in the coming years.

ADVERTISEMENT

The incoming officers will take up roles with local authorities in Clare, Cork, Galway, Kerry, Kildare, Kilkenny, Offaly, Sligo, Westmeath and Wicklow.

There are already biodiversity officers working with councils in Galway City, Fingal, Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown and Dublin City.

Commitment

Minister of State at the Department of Housing Malcolm Noonan welcomed the increased allocation of resources to biodiversity, saying that it showed the Government’s commitment to taking action on nature.

“These 10 new posts, and the funding for a further 15 that I announced as part of Budget 2023, will have an enormous impact on the ground in helping to deliver action for nature at the local level,” Minister Noonan said.

“The declaration by the Dáil of a biodiversity emergency in 2019 sent a clear signal of how seriously we as a country need to take the biodiversity challenges ahead, and our objectives in the programme for government demonstrate this urgency.

“Today’s announcement is another step in the right direction and it reflects my commitment to ensuring that these objectives are fulfilled and that all local authorities have a sufficient number of heritage and biodiversity officers among their staff complement.”