WE ARE FACING a catastrophic biodiversity crisis. The natural systems we all depend upon are in peril. Perhaps nowhere is this more obvious than in Ireland – a country almost completely bereft of intact ecosystems.
Today, only 1-2% of Ireland is covered by healthy native woodlands. In a country that was once covered by forest, including temperate Atlantic rainforest, a unique and beautiful habitat, this is not only heart-breaking to think of, but it is threatening life as we know it, as the health of humans and healthy biodiverse forests are intrinsically linked.
We need drastic, tangible action if we are to restore our natural world and protect human health.
Ireland’s seven (soon to be eight with the new national park in the Corca Dhuibhne area of Co Kerry) national parks combined cover a meagre ~1% (~750 Km2) of Ireland’s land area.
For comparison, Scotland’s two national parks, Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park and Cairngorms National Park combined cover almost 6400 km2. This equates to ~8% of Scotland’s land area. Furthermore, according to the Scottish Rewilding Alliance, more than 2% of Scotland’s land is now rewilding. There are even calls to make Scotland the world’s first rewilding nation. Further afield, 30 % of New Zealand’s land area is designated for national parks.
Irish national parks remain small, isolated areas overrun by a common theme of overgrazed and barren hills, invasive species and spruce plantations. At present, the use of the term ‘national park’ misleads people into believing that something is being done to restore and protect nature. The reality, however, is that Irish national parks are a shadow of what they ought to be.
As part of its Strategic Plan 2023-25, the National Parks and Wildlife Service is due to publish National Park management plans by the end of 2024. The plans will include a full public consultation and appropriate environmental assessments. We need an entirely new approach to nature restoration and protection in Ireland, and we need an entirely new approach to national parks. We need new legislation to define what a national park is and what its purpose is. However, perhaps most importantly, we need to give nature constitutional rights. The passing of the EU nature restoration law should be the spark we need to make these changes in Ireland.
So what are the alternatives? What can we do? A proposed example: a reimagined Páirc Naisiúnta Chonamara. An area where humans and nature could thrive together. Let’s make all of Connemara into a large, 2000 km2, ambitious national park. Nature restoration, rewilding and nature conservation at scale. Let us allow native flora to return to the region which includes a diverse mosaic of blanket bog, forest and montane scrub.
Currently, Connemara National Park is far from the sanctuary for nature it ought to be. It is a 20km2 tokenistic tourist trap. Similar to the national park, much of Connemara is an ecological dead zone. The hills and mountains are overgrazed and barren. The only substantial ‘greenery’: spruce plantations and invasive species. It might be subjectively beautiful, but it is a degraded ecosystem.
So, what would this reimaged Páirc Naisiúnta Chonamara look like? What would it involve?
Local communities are the key to such a transformation, with farming being a crucial consideration. Restoring Connemara’s natural landscapes would involve a change to the way the land is managed. If this is done with local communities having decision-making power, there is the potential for immense positive change.
The number of sheep allowed to graze the uplands would have to be significantly reduced. This is a difficult and emotional debate, but the current number of grazing sheep combined with an uncontrolled number of deer is preventing native species from recovering.
If the grazing pressure is reduced, nature will have a chance to recover. Key to this would be to adequately compensate farmers for loss of income in addition to providing them with alternative employment opportunities, be it direct alternatives to sheep farming, removing invasive species, or nature restoration. Farmers would be at the core of this revitalisation.
All spruce plantations should in time be replaced with native ecosystems. Although they might appear green, these spruce plantations are ecological dead zones that in no way resembles true native forests. Again, landowners must be adequately compensated, both today and in the long term. Instead of the non-native Sitka spruce dominating the landscape, we should see a revival of native Irish tree species. Oak, hazel, birch, Scots pine, rowan and willow might once more climb up the hills and mountains and cloak Connemara.
Change is possible. Perhaps the best example of where this has worked is Costa Rica. A country that restored its ravaged land to health through pioneering a system of payments for environmental services (PES). Stipends and loans are offered to farmers for protecting and restoring forests. In a few decades, Costa Rica has gone from a country dominated by deforestation to a forest cover of close to 60%. In Ireland, the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) could be used in a similar fashion.
We have failed to protect our bogs in Ireland. Bogs are not only biodiversity hotspots, but they are also important carbon sinks, as they capture and sequester more CO2 than they release. They are key if we are to reach our climate targets. Rewetting and bog restoration must be a crucial aspect of the new Páirc Naisiúnta Chonamara. If successful, Connemara’s mosaic landscape of bogs, hillsides and forests will return.
The removal of invasive species in Connemara and across Ireland will be costly and it will require significant manpower, but it is something we cannot afford not to do. Every year, the invasive species spread a bit further. Every year, they swallow more of the land. Removing them can be an employment opportunity and a way to reconnect people with nature, but we have to act now.
Large scale nature restoration would also require an array of experts such as ecologists, conservationists and biologists. If done in collaboration with the University of Galway, we could see degrees in biology and nature restoration in Irish. In addition, a large national park would require a large number of park rangers. These should ideally be local and tasked with setting up the national park and creating a trail network complete with bothies and cabins.
A new Páirc Naisiúnta Chonamara could be an incredible source of employment, help boost the local population, and provide a socio-economic revitalisation to the area. Lastly, if done correctly, it could also help to preserve and expand the Gaeltacht.
Albeit a difficult topic, apex predators should be reintroduced in Connemara as part of a network of connected protected areas and corridors. The Irish deer population is out of control and causing enormous harm. The only way to truly control the population and restore a natural balance is through the reintroduction of natural predators. The easiest one to reintroduce would be the lynx, an extremely shy animal that will have a minimal impact on people’s daily lives. However, in time, bears and wolves should also be considered. We need predators if we are to address the rampant overgrazing and control the deer population and truly restore nature.
The research on predator reintroduction has shown mixed results. Initial reports from Yellowstone National Park after wolves were reintroduced to the park showed immense positive effects. However, in the 20 years since the reintroduction, the one-sided positives have been challenged. Reintroducing apex predators is no quick fix to achieve a healthy ecosystem as the effects are highly dependent on the landscapes and existing habitats in which they are reintroduced. However, they have an enormous capacity to thrill and excite us, and they undeniably belong here.
By restoring the landscape, we could also look to reintroduce other amazing species like the capercaillie, an incredible bird that once roamed Irish forests. As is, the almost complete lack of native forests prevents the reintroduction of the capercaillie, but this needs to change.
Lastly, a right to roam should be introduced. We need to provide and encourage people with ample opportunity to spend time in and around nature. People should be able to hike throughout Connemara, pick mushrooms and berries, and wild camp by remote lakes or in lush forests. The health benefits linked to spending more time in nature are endless, ranging from benefits to physical and cardiovascular health, to positive mental health effects. Hippocrates famously proclaimed that “nature itself is the best physician”, but we need to make it accessible to all. In addition, intriguing research has shown a link between time spent in nature and pro-environmental attitudes. It turns out that by spending more time in nature, people are more likely to look after it. We need to demonstrate to people what healthy ecosystems look and feel like.
We must challenge the narrative that rewilding and nature restoration equals anti-farming and anti-rural communities. It’s not either or. It’s not nature or people. We need to move from nature being something we go to visit in isolated uninhabited national parks to living alongside nature and making it an essential part of our daily lives. A reimagined Páirc Naisiúnta Chonamara could provide the entire area with a sustainable nature-based economy and reinvigorate the area. It could become the Yellowstone of Ireland.
However, this is only one example. We need similar ambitious plans for Kerry, Mayo, Donegal, and perhaps in particular for Dublin and the Wicklow mountains. We need to move away from a model where nature is imprisoned and confined to small areas and replace it with a model where nature is allowed to recover at scale. We need to move from smidges of good news to large victories for both nature and people. There is hope, but we need to take drastic tangible action.
After all, pro nature equals pro people.
Dr Ola Løkken Nordrum is an Anaesthesiology trainee and is Operations Officer with the Irish Doctors for the Environment.
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