Debate contribution: Independent Environmental Protection Agency

Debate contribution by Mr Andrew McMurray on 13 May 2024.

MLA: Mr Andrew McMurray
Party at the time: Alliance Party
Date: 13 May 2024
Type: Debate contribution
Business: Opposition Business
Heading: Independent Environmental Protection Agency
Assembly identifier: Official Report component 4489274

Text

Yes, this is my maiden speech, so I might go off topic. My grandparents lived in Massey Park, which is just round the corner from here. As a child in the '80s, I remember sledging here on a classically snowy winter's day and asking my father what went on in this grand and imposing Building. I was told, "Not much". Even without having any concept of the context of why not much went on, that felt to me, a child who was already in awe of these surroundings, to be an awful shame.
I was a child of the Troubles, a teenager of the peace process, a young adult during devolution and a parent during power-sharing — or not sharing, as the case has been on occasion. Stormont's timeline has mirrored my own by way of seminal chapters. To say that it is both humbling and an honour to be here is an understatement. I hope I can contribute to the institution in ways that will benefit my constituents of South Down and everyone in our society because it is in the shelter of each other that the people live. I pay tribute to my predecessor, Patrick Brown, for all the work that he has done. I thank my constituency and party colleagues for entrusting me to perform this role and everyone who sent a message of congratulations or offered a prayer. Finally, I thank my wife, children, parents and wider family for their support and love at this time. To the motion at hand: my former career was as an outdoor pursuits instructor. That stemmed from my passion for activities in the outdoor environment: surfing, climbing and mountain biking. Kayaking on rivers was my gateway into that lifestyle. As Ratty said to Mole:
"Believe me, my young friend, there is NOTHING–absolutely nothing–half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats."
I have been lucky enough to travel the world to mess about on many a river in a boat. While it is true that there is nowhere like home, in the case of our rivers, that is usually in the form of an effluent smell. There has been a demonstrable deterioration in the water quality of our rivers over the past 10 years. Our rivers, lakes and river estuaries cannot even be deemed to be of "Good" overall status; they are merely "Moderate". That marks a deterioration and is proof that we are failing to protect them and the habitats that they provide. All that is extremely concerning and indicative of the ecological breakdown that we face. We are simply not making any inroads on the issue. When we compare ourselves with our nearest neighbours, we see that improving the status of our rivers is possible. Fifty per cent of rivers in the Republic are of "Good" or "High" ecological health. It is worth noting that they have an Environmental Protection Agency that is independent from the Government. It was a love for the outdoors that led me to set down my roots in Castlewellan in South Down. It has a superb coastline consisting of strands, rocky shores and tidal loughs, and areas of ancient woodland and open hillside, from rolling drumlins to crags on high hills — all areas that I have taken great pleasure and satisfaction in exploring, but all areas where habitats are under threat. The fire on the slopes of Slieve Donard in April 2021 was the starkest of those events, but the truth is that habitat loss was going on before that and will continue unabated without cross-departmental action and legislative support from the Assembly. We need to be cognisant that there is no silver bullet that will reverse the habitat loss. Our upland environment has seen upwards of a 300% to 400% increase in the number of users accessing the hills, especially during COVID. While it is great to see people getting outside, the impact that we have on our uplands is drastic. Quite simply, other jurisdictions have more levers to pull and more resources to invest in their wild spaces than we do in Northern Ireland. It is not just one Department's role to reverse the stresses that the natural environment is suffering. The problem has been decades in the making and has not been helped by the stop-start nature of this institution. Our natural environment needs support and time to heal. I want to finish by referring to schemes that have proved that biodiversity can be protected and, with some help, can be successful and thrive. The Mourne Heritage Trust has piloted healthy heathlands in which natural materials have been used to re-profile peat hags so that they retain water and sediment, preventing them from washing out. There are the National Trust's DAERA-funded wildlife recovery projects and path building on the side of Slieve Donard. Landowners in South Down have seen the benefit of tree planting on small parcels of land and on whole hillsides, all of which increase an area's biodiversity. The RSPB's red kite scheme has seen the introduction of that majestic bird to South Down. Indeed, the red squirrel has seen its numbers increase due to conservation schemes. Those successes are noteworthy, but there is no consistent approach or, indeed, funding for them here compared with other parts of the UK. They are, admittedly, piecemeal due to the time-limited nature of their funding. Therefore, while the motion's call for an independent environmental protection agency is welcome, if we are serious about our environmental and biodiversity status and are ever to improve it in the long term, a truly cross-cutting and integrated approach from the Assembly is required.

941 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

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