70% of all appeals to Environmental Commissioner in 2024 were on forestry
The Commissioner for Environmental Information today (Thursday, May 8) disclosed that 70% of appeals made to his office in 2024 related to requests for environmental information on forestry.
Ger Deering, the Commissioner for Environmental Information, said that last year, two public bodies – the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) and Coillte – together received over 1,000 requests under Access to Information on the Environment (AIE) regulations for information related to forestry.
The requests for forestry information included requests for monitoring records, license inspections, and harvesting information.
According to the commissioner, the purpose of AIE regulations is to 'enable members of the public to have timely and easy access to environmental information' held by government bodies.
The 2024 annual review published by the Office of the Commissioner for Environmental Information today shows that it received 313 appeals in 2024, completed 286 appeals and had 424 appeals on hand at the end of the year.
It also issued 168 formal decisions.
Environmental Commissioner
The Environmental Commissioner said that demand for forestry information had increased in recent years and that DAFM Coillte, and all public bodies, should consider all options which would allow for the proactive dissemination of frequently requested material and avoid the need for an AIE requests.
The commissioner also highlighted today the number of decisions of public bodies he has had to overturn.
But there was some improvement in 2024 – of the 168 appeals that went to a binding decision in 2024, the commissioner overturned the public body's decision in 66% of cases down on the 2023 figure of 92%.
Some of the decisions that are highlighted in the 2024 annual review include the release of chemical information relating to Dublin Airport Authority and the release of forestry licence information held by Coillte.
Coillte
According to the Environmental Commissioner Coillte decided to refuse access to information sought under the AIE regulations relating to certain forestry felling licences granted to Coillte.
On October 10, 2022, an application was made to request access to unredacted 'updated' Appropriate Assessment Determination (AAD) documents associated with nine individual felling licenses granted to Coillte and in respect of which Coillte had been notified by the Forest Service, over the period June – July 2022, of a new Hen Harrier nesting site which overlaps with the licenced area.
Coillte refused access to the information because it said it highly confidential and that it only received the information from the Forestry Service for operational reasons.
However the commissioner directed that access be given to the information.
He noted that related information and Felling Licence Application Maps had already been provided to the requester including through a separate AIE request to Coillte.
The commissioner also said that the information that was the subject of the request did not contain any additional information that could narrow down the location of the nesting sites.
Deering said today: 'Proactive dissemination of information, without the need for an AIE request, has significant benefits for both the public and public bodies.
'It significantly reduces the administration required by public bodies to respond to AIE requests, while also allowing those who want to participate in environmental decision-making to do so easily and in an informed manner.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Journal
4 days ago
- The Journal
Over 53,000 rental homes 'effectively taken off' private market due to HAP scheme, report finds
A NEW REPORT has highlighted a number of areas of concern in relation to the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) scheme, uncovering systemic failures, widespread delays, and a worsening impact on the rental housing market. The investigation, carried out by the Ombudsman, found that the HAP scheme has effectively removed thousands of properties from the private rental sector – contributing to rising rents and making it harder for people to find housing, both within and outside the scheme. Among the most pressing issues identified was the delay in processing HAP applications. The report highlighted that in some cases, applicants experienced long waits between applying and receiving confirmation or payment. As a result, some lost out on rental properties while waiting for approval. The Ombudsman, Ger Deering, said that his office 'has received numerous complaints from members of the public who believed they had been disadvantaged by the current system.' Another isue note in the report was the duplication between the HAP and social housing application processes. Applicants must often submit the same documentation twice, once for social housing support and again for HAP, despite the fact that approval for social housing should automatically entitle them to HAP assistance. The report also pointed to disparities in how HAP tenants are treated compared to tenants in direct social housing. HAP recipients are frequently given less security and face greater financial uncertainty. Additionally, the report criticised local authorities for failing to provide clear, consistent information about key elements of the scheme — including how much rent tenants are expected to pay and what discretionary increases might be available. As of the end of 2024, HAP was supporting 53,742 households across the country. Advertisement According to the Ombudsman, this has effectively withdrawn the same number of properties from the private rental market, intensifying competition and inflating rental prices. 'This has contributed to the sustained increase in the rate of rents, which in turn has made it more difficult to source properties for both HAP tenants and those renting independently,' the report states. The scheme, launched in September 2014, was designed as a replacement for the Rent Supplement system and is administered by Ireland's 31 local authorities. HAP provides a direct payment to landlords on behalf of eligible tenants, with caps in place based on household size and location. Local authorities can raise the cap by up to 35% in certain cases, though this often still falls short of actual rental costs. As rents continue to rise, many HAP recipients are now paying large top-ups to their landlords in addition to the rent they pay to local authorities, a situation that charities have warned is unsustainable. The Ombudsman has recommended that HAP payments be backdated to the start of a tenancy once an applicant is approved for social housing support. He has also called for a thorough review of the scheme to streamline the application process, improve transparency, and ensure fairer treatment for tenants. Deering added that an 'information pack' provided to HAP applicants, and should include indicative rent figures, information on the HAP cap and an explanation that there may be an increase available, depending on the situation 'This information should be presented in a simple and accessible format,' the report states. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Irish Times
4 days ago
- Irish Times
HAP caps should be revised regularly to reflect rental market, Ombudsman says
Overly complex processes and the duplication of work by local authorities causing delays to housing assistance payment (HAP) applications, alongside the refusal of legitimate applications, were among the issues discovered by an Ombudsman investigation. Ombudsman Ger Deering said his office received numerous complaints from the public, and identified shortcomings through voluntary housing and homeless groups regarding the scheme before its investigation. Launched in 2014, the HAP payment to landlords was intended to cover the full cost of a household's rent. Due to significant increases in rent rates, however, two-thirds of HAP households were paying the difference between the HAP cap and the actual cost of rent in 2023. Some 53,742 households were in receipt of HAP at the end of 2024, meaning the same number of rentals have been removed from the private rental sector, the Ombudsman said, contributing to a sustained increase in the rate of rents. READ MORE The availability of rental properties coming under the HAP limits is declining as rents increase, prompting a recommendation from the Ombudsman that caps should be revised on a regular basis to reflect the rental market. [ More than 100 families in Dublin at risk of homelessness as tenant-in-situ applications paused Opens in new window ] Among the findings of its investigation into HAP's administration was a 'duplication of work' being done by local authorities resulting in potential delays. Although households approved for social housing support are immediately eligible for HAP, they must make separate applications, resulting in repetition. The report also highlighted the 'overly complex' requirement for local authorities to seek approval from the HAP shared services centre (SSC) before amendments to HAP records or applications for approval can be made. It noted that the SSC processed 5,821 amendments in one sample month during the investigation. The investigation also found further 'unnecessary delays' when it comes to validating applications and verifying landlords' proof of ownership. Delays increase the risk of inability to secure properties, it said. Separately, the Ombudsman found that some local authorities are refusing HAP applications despite all evidence suggesting a tenancy is legitimate, while others have approved HAP where it should not have been. Local authorities have 'broad discretion' when determining whether a tenancy is genuine, with decisions not always accounting for each case being different or nuanced. In particular, it said local authorities place 'undue weight on family relationships even where all other evidence suggests the tenancy is legitimate'. Separately, despite being legislatively considered socially housed, HAP tenants do not have access to the same benefits as their counterparts in standard social housing such as tailored arrears repayment plans. These inequities pose a risk of HAP tenants falling into a 'poverty trap,' it said. 'This unfairness is compounded by the fact that they do not have the security of tenure that their counterparts in other forms of social housing have,' the Ombudsman said.
Irish Times
5 days ago
- Irish Times
New batteries based on rusting will help make Ireland's energy secure and clean
One of Ireland's most exciting and important energy projects is quietly being developed at a remote outpost in Donegal, not far from Malin Head. FuturEnergy Ireland, a joint venture between Coillte and ESB, has been granted planning permission to build Europe's first iron-air battery facility, a new technology that promises to store renewable energy for weeks while enhancing and supporting the electricity grid. Known as the Ballynahone Energy Storage project, it will look modest – a collection of weatherproof containers on a three-hectare site beside an electrical substation – but what it represents could be transformative. Iron-air batteries are a new form of long-duration energy storage (LDES) that is needed to help Ireland reduce its dependence on fossil gas and keep the lights on during the so-called Dunkelflaute – periods of still, dark weather when neither wind nor solar can contribute meaningfully to electricity supply. Ireland is particularly vulnerable to such events. We lack large hydro dams or the kind of strong power grid interconnection that allows countries like Denmark or the Netherlands to share surpluses with neighbours. We remain deeply reliant on gas, an increasingly insecure and volatile source of energy, with rising prices, geopolitical risks and high emissions. Plans to allow liquefied natural gas terminals and gas-fired power-generation capacity risk locking us into this dependency for decades. READ MORE There are two main routes away from this: interconnection and storage. Both are needed. Mass interconnection was the cornerstone of the late Eddie O'Connor's vision for a pan-European 'supergrid', where electricity flows freely across borders, smoothing out supply and demand of renewable energy. But even that won't cover us when entire regions are becalmed and dark. Until recently, most storage solutions were either short-duration lithium-ion batteries or pumped hydro schemes – both useful, but limited to hours, rather than days or weeks. A new generation of long-duration storage technologies is emerging. Iron-air batteries, like those planned in Donegal, work on an elegant principle: they store electricity through reversible rusting . They're slow, responding over hours and days, not seconds – but that's exactly what's needed to back up renewables over longer timescales. The key material, iron, is cheap, abundant and non-toxic – unlike lithium or cobalt, which are costly and face supply constraints. Lithium-ion batteries are more suitable for cases where size and weight are a priority, like electric vehicles and phones, whereas iron-air is more suitable for stationary storage. Form Energy, the US firm behind the iron-air technology in Donegal, say their batteries will store electricity at one-tenth of the cost of lithium-ion. They also say it is very safe, with no risk of thermal runaway. Donegal was chosen for a good reason. A greater share of wind energy is curtailed there than anywhere in Ireland, because the electricity grid can't absorb it. This lost energy, known as curtailment, increases our electricity bills, discourages investment in renewables and triggers the need for costly and controversial overhead transmission lines. Batteries located near substations, like Ballynahone, can soak up surplus power locally, reducing curtailment and pressure on the grid. This won't be a silver bullet. A hundred projects like this would be needed to replace the generation capacity of Moneypoint, which has long been a bedrock of Ireland's electricity security – albeit a highly polluting one. Ireland's energy future depends on more than just building wind and solar farms A critical challenge now is how clean storage can compete with fossil gas, when today's infrastructure and market is built around it. While Form Energy says the technology can compete with legacy power plants, the cost of the project in Donegal has not been disclosed and the technology is only at the cusp of commercial development. Ireland also already has a pipeline of new gas-generation capacity which is designed to fill the gaps in wind and solar, diminishing the immediate case for clean storage. That said, legal challenges to new gas infrastructure may shift the balance. Friends of the Irish Environment has recently lodged a judicial review of a proposed 600 megawatt gas power plant at the proposed site of the Shannon LNG terminal, in a case that could set precedent. If gas projects are delayed or blocked on climate grounds, clean alternatives like storage may have more space to scale. Battery technologies, being modular and factory-built, also have the advantage of rapid deployment and steep cost declines – as we've seen with solar panels and lithium-ion. Other storage technologies may yet outcompete iron-air. I'm sceptical that hydrogen will play any role in everyday energy use, but it could become a strategic storage option. Likewise, there are exciting developments in battery chemistries based on sodium, zinc or flow technology, and systems that store energy via heat, gravity or air compression. Ireland's energy future depends on more than just building wind and solar farms. We need energy to be both clean and dependable – when the wind blows and when it doesn't. That requires strategically located, long-duration storage. Donegal's rusting battery containers might be a critical step towards that future. Prof Hannah Daly is professor of sustainable energy at University College Cork
