Ireland South MEP says European Parliament’s position on rewetting land too onerous on Ireland

An Ireland South MEP says the European Parliament’s current position on rewetting land is too onerous on Ireland.

Fianna Fáil MEP Billy Kelleher says he welcomes the move from government to seek amendment to the Nature Restoration Law to lessen its impact on Irish agriculture.

An analysis by MEP Kelleher’s office into the current European Parliament proposal for the law, shows Ireland would need to re-wet over 150,000 hectares by 2050.

He says he will do his best to scale back the Parliament’s proposal to an achievable and manageable one from an Irish perspective.

MEP Kelleher says he has other concerns about the Nature Restoration Law in terms of maintaining green spaces in urban areas, which could impact on the ability to build houses.