Almost €100,000 announced in funding for biodiversity projects in Mayo
The Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform, Malcolm Noonan, has today announced a combined €2.7m in funding for local biodiversity projects, with €99,995 going to seven projects in Mayo.
Over €2.5 million is being awarded to local authorities to carry out biodiversity projects through the Local Biodiversity Action Fund (LBAF) and €193k is being granted to the natural history recording community through the Small Recording Grants scheme.
Operated by the National Parks and Wildlife Service of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, the LBAF scheme was first launched in 2018. Since then, a total of just over €6m has been granted to local authorities through the LBAF for projects that support actions in the third National Biodiversity Action Plan (NBAP). This year’s grants will build on that investment.
Projects approved this year in Mayo include: €30,720 for phase two of the county wetland survey; €21,250 for the Mayo Community Biodiversity Action and Awareness Programme; €12,750 for a survey of breeding wader and the cliff nesting seabird population; €12,580 for the use of Old Irish Goats to control Gunnera Tinctoria; €10,200 for Himalayan Balsam control; €8,245 for bird conservation and awareness programme; and €4,250 for the Native Woodland Planting Project in Ballyhaunis.
Minister Noonan stated: “Given that it’s Biodiversity Week, I’m especially delighted to announce funding of over €2.5 million for 188 biodiversity projects. The Local Biodiversity Action Fund is an enormously impactful scheme that supports local authorities and communities to deliver on Ireland’s national objectives for nature, from invasive species to habitat restoration to awareness-raising to surveys and monitoring work.
“As more and more biodiversity officers join the ranks of our local authorities, I know that the benefits for nature and people that this fund provides are only going to grow.”
The 188 projects approved across all 31 local authorities cover a range of biodiversity-related activities, including invasive alien species control, dune restoration, wetland surveys and biodiversity awareness and training.
Meanwhile, a grant scheme providing support to Ireland’s natural history recording community is now in operation for a fifth year, with growing popularity and record numbers of applicants. The Small Recording Grant scheme, managed by the NPWS, aims to help established naturalists recording in Ireland to maintain and enhance their expertise in species identification, and to develop the next generation of natural history recorders.
The scheme supports volunteers, groups, societies and associations of recorders who have limited or no access to financial supports for their work. Sixty-seven applicants have been notified of their funding allocations, at a combined total of €193k.
The data generated by these recording exercises is utilised by the NPWS to inform its understanding of the distribution and ecology of many species and to assess their status. In turn, it informs advice on nature conservation objectives and practical measures to protect species and habitats.
Minister Noonan said: “It is fantastic to be able to fund these local initiatives once again. In 2022, my department funded 24 projects to the tune of €70,000. This year, we have significantly increased resources for this very worthwhile scheme, with 67 projects approved at a cost of €193,000 – almost three times the projects and three times the funding.
“This scheme supports the work of the NPWS in recording many aspects of individual species that it would be almost impossible for my staff to carry out themselves.”