Ireland's National Parks: Ambitious EU targets are coming — but without stronger laws, staffing and standards, the State risks failing to restore the land it already owns, writes Pádraic Fogarty. jrnl.ie/6989788

I think it's a good thing that the State is buying land for more and bigger national parks. But it has yet to demonstrate that it's capable of managing the land it has. jrnl.ie/6989788

Europe spent years debating whether the energy transition was affordable. Spain quietly answered the question: gas now sets its electricity price in only 7% of hours. Strategic autonomy doesn’t arrive via summit communiqués. It’s built in advance — in wind farms, solar parks, and grid investment

We often hear from the farm orgs that great change is happening and measures to improve water quality just need time to take effect. But the rivers don't lie

Unbelievably, a number of EU leaders want to use the war in the Middle East to withdraw from climate goals, when accelerating the switch to renewables is the obvious course. Spain's Pedro Sanchez seems to be the only one calling this out. euobserver.com/207696/spain...

Great news from the south of England where life is recovering five years into a trawling ban. a "quiet but powerful transformation is unfolding beneath the waves" 🐟 www.bbc.com/news/article...

Cheers to everyone who delayed fossil fuel phaseout by saying "you can't switch off fossil fuels overnight" Because thanks to them everyone now has to face a situation where fossil fuels are switched off overnight 🙃🙃🙃

"If there was no area where dogs could be off leash as suggested by Cooney, this would then be clear to everyone and easier for the council and NPWS to enforce" Letter today re my recent story on Bull Island and lack of enforcement. Also, some good news... www.irishtimes.com/opinion/lett...

Very good piece from Olive Heffernon on the fishing crisis in the south west. There's a real urgency now to taking action before yet more damage is done. oceanographicmagazine.com/features/cre...

Welcome comments from Minister for Nature Christopher O'Sullivan that he wants to see legislation for National Parks as well as a significant expansion of State lands for nature conservation. www.rte.ie/radio/radio1...

"The sector does not operate within planning or environmental laws" says @epaireland.bsky.social Yet commercial peat extractors exported €40m worth of the product in plain sight last year www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

Dublin City Council has said that efforts to enforce rules on Bull Island have "proven futile", a remarkable statement. Would we tolerate people running amok in the National Gallery or at Newgrange? Hardly, so why can't we have rules at important nature sites? www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

The Netherlands is the latest country to face legal action for allowing destructive fishing in areas designated for nature protection www.clientearth.org/latest/press...

This is a slow death for the River Boyne. There has never been any particular effort to alleviate the pressure on this river despite years (decades?) of warnings and reports www.independent.ie/regionals/lo...

The dairy industry has operated for too long on the freedom to pollute. Workers whose jobs are now at risk should ask their bosses why they did not invest in meeting legal requirements. www.agriland.ie/farming-news...

This is a good news story that I hope is happening in Ireland as well www.bbc.com/news/article...

Fishermen are right to oppose a ban on tangle netting in the absence of a wider plan for fisheries recovery. I think there is agreement that these areas need proper management that could allow both fish and fishermen to flourish...

Where Ireland has failed, Costa Rica has succeeded ... and then some! A worthwhile read from @thinkorswim.bsky.social www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

I spoke to Sean Moncrieff about the unfolding disaster in our seas and why the Department of Agriculture especially needs to act www.newstalk.com/podcasts/hig...

The fossil fuel industry is trying to bankrupt Greenpeace www.euronews.com/2026/02/27/g...

Critically endangered species are being killed in a rapidly expanding crayfish fishery, and the State has known the risks for decades, writes Pádraic Fogarty. jrnl.ie/6968217

Why are thousands of rare and protected species drowning in fishing gear off the Irish coast, including in our only marine National Park? jrnl.ie/6968217

The Irish Whale and Dolphin Group wants an end to tangle netting www.independent.ie/life/climate...

This is a huge advance in the standard of wastewater treatment in Ireland and stands in stark contrast to the half measures from agriculture, which is a much bigger source of pollution in our waterways www.rte.ie/news/dublin/...

Great win for the Greens in England, shows continued appetite for action on climate and nature that's fair

Nice to see this research but for context: • Most feral goats in Ire are not 'old Irish' • Traditional breeds of livestock should be preserved but does not mean they qualify as wildlife. • Regardless of the genetics, feral goats are an invasive species www.irishtimes.com/ireland/educ...

Full session of the JOC on tangle netting and their impact on endangered and protected species. I'm unimpressed with the performance of the Dept. of Agriculture whose responsibility it is to manage our seas. www.oireachtas.ie/en/committee...

Fishing net of a supertrawler can be 10 times the length of the ship itself at around a kilometer (0.6 miles) long, trailing ocean floor obliterating marine life - nothing escapes Scars left behind by trawlers can be so vast that they’re even visible from space www.iflscience.com/seamounts-in...

The Connemara hills suffer some of the worst overgrazing in Ireland. Protect the bogs, restore the forests, you'll see peak flooding decrease... www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

Latest figures show a total failure of policy to deal with agriculture emissions www.independent.ie/farming/fore...

Good overview of the tangle net issue from @philipb-h.bsky.social this morning with input from fishermen and scientists. Dept. of Ag. officials will appear at the Joint Oireachtas Committee next week to answer for their inaction. www.rte.ie/radio/radio1...

Indiscriminate fishing resulting in wildlife wipeout, including in our only marine National Park theconversation.com/endangered-m...

Irish Timber Growers Association maintain that Sitka spruce is not an invasive species... 🧐 www.irishtimes.com/opinion/lett...

"There's nothing left really" A Kerry tangle net fisherman responds to the Marine Institute report that thousands of protected and endangered species are dying in the fishery www.radiokerry.ie/podcasts/ker...

Solar exploded across Africa in 2025: apnews.com/article/sola...

Global ecosystem collapse is a real prospect. An appropriate response would be for us to restore our own ecosystems and diversify our food production. www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/ou...

In this week's Science & Climate in @irishtimes.com, @whittledaway.bsky.social looks at Ireland's laws, plans - and inaction - on controlling invasive species.......... www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

This is such a waste of everyone's time and of government resources. Let people use normal words that have been flexibly used in many contexts for centuries ffs www.theguardian.com/business/202...

‘We don’t have a plan’ Invasive species are an important pressure on biodiversity but confusion reigns about what qualifies as 'invasive' and whose job it it is to take action www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

Acadian Seaplants, a massive Canadian corporation and owner of Arramara Teoranta, has put in an application to harvest tens of thousands of tons of wrack from huge swathes of the west coast. Is your area affected? Get in touch to start a local campaign ✊️ my.uplift.ie/petitions/st...

It literally takes one minute to sign this petition to stop mass harvesting of seaweed from the west coast of Ireland without proper public consultation. I signed and it’s at 12,222 out of 15,000 rn — please sign:

Positive response in the Dáil yesterday from the taoiseach following Q on tangle nets from Jennifer Whitmore. Action must follow!

This cause is close to my heart - please sign: my.uplift.ie/petitions/st... @uplift.ie

"Figures from a fish counter in Waterville... show sea trout stocks have decreased by 95.6 per cent since 2002" The sea is empty, fishing as an economic sector is over, the only thing that will turn things around is strict protection www.independent.ie/regionals/ke...

Great panel discussion at the @social-democrats.bsky.social national conference on rewilding the sea. Thank you to TD Jennifer Whitmore and Cllr Joan Hopkins for the invitation 🐟

Thousands of sea animals needlessly killed as bycatch of crayfishing industry in practice Dr Nick Payne of @tcddublin.bsky.social says is shameful www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

Sharks on brink of extinction caught in tangle nets in protected Irish waters "That the Irish Government still allows this form of destructive fishing throughout Irish coastal waters is an absolute disgrace" www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

After flooding in the past, successive governments promised protections, but instead, doubled down on dredging and delayed land-use reform, leaving communities exposed, writes Pádraic Fogarty. jrnl.ie/6946724

After Midelton was flooded in 2023 Leo Varadkar said we needed a Land Use Plan. The Plan is ready but @micheal-martin.bsky.social won't publish it. Instead, he's legally designating rivers as "highly modified" jrnl.ie/6946724

"one more instance of our failure to value the diversity with which nature has endowed this island" www.irishtimes.com/opinion/edit...