Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 October 2025
649. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his attention has been drawn to a National Parks and Wildlife Service report (details supplied); the actions his Department is taking to investigate this instance; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56801/25]
View answer662. Deputy Pádraig Rice asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to provide an update on the ongoing investigation into the felling of trees in Cork (details supplied); the actions taken by his Department to date on this matter; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57093/25]
View answer668. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on the investigation into tree felling in County Cork; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57322/25]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 649, 662 and 668 together.
My Department received a report on 16th July 2025 from the National Parks and Wildlife Service of a large-scale reclamation of private land in Rathcoole, County Cork. From the investigation so far, the site does not consist of 30 acres of native forest but was a network of fields separated by extensive hedging, with trees at different stages of their lifecycle spread throughout the area, including in the hedging.
The overall site is approximately 30 acres in size. The incident involved the alleged removal of a network of hedgerows and the resultant merging of smaller fields into larger ones, along with the removal of a number of trees from within the hedgerows and elsewhere in the site. Necessary site visits have been completed, and the investigation is ongoing. My Department is considering the most appropriate response to the incident, but let me assure the Deputy that I am taking the matter extremely seriously.
