It is envisaged that a new environment committee will be established as part of the Northern Ireland Executive as a matter of strategic priority.
This follows recommendations from an over-arching review of environmental governance in Northern Ireland, undertaken by an independent panel of experts established by Minister for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, Andrew Muir some months ago.
The panel’s final report was published earlier this week (October 21).
It is anticipated that the establishment of a bespoke environment committee at Stormont will give members of the existing Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs committee more time to focus on matters specifically relating to farming and food.
However, the panel’s report falls short of calling for a bespoke department of the environment.
This reflects the fact that it is less than a decade since environmental matters were included within the brief now managed by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs.
Panel members also make the point that their recommendations will help crystallise all matters relating to the environment in Northern Ireland and how they impact across all aspects of government and society.
According to the report, this should deliver more effective levels of communication across all stakeholder organisations in both the public and private sectors.
Recommendations
The panel’s recommendations will specifically challenge all agencies and groupings to deliver higher environmental standards, including organisations such as Northern Ireland Water.
The report noted the complex nature of the environmental challenges facing Northern Ireland as a whole at the present time.
Moreover, the report said addressing all of these issues in a holistic manner will take a significant period of time – algal blooms and the accompanying impact on the Lough Neagh ecosystem being a case in point.
However, panel members believe that there are numerous steps that can be taken in the short-term to help improve matters
The report refers to Northern Ireland’s environment as being “in crisis”. They make the point that while addressing these matters will come at a cost, the cost of inaction could be even greater.
The key recommendation from the report relates to the establishment of an independent environmental regulator that is independent of government and established as a non-departmental public body.
This approach will help to concentrate the disparate drivers that impact on the environment within one body.
Minister Muir has signalled his support for this proposal.
