The awarding of funding for a biodiversity officer in Carlow was described as a “really good news for nature”.

Minister for Heritage and TD for Carlow Kilkenny Malcolm Noonan has announced the funding for Carlow County Council and 10 other local authorities for the appointment of biodiversity officers, including for Carlow County Council.

Announcing the funding today, Minister for Heritage Malcolm Noonan said:

“We’re already seeing the tremendous impact that the four biodiversity officers in post in Fingal, Dún Laoghaire Rathdown, Galway and Dublin City Councils are having; we added 10 more late last year – including one for Kilkenny; and as of today we’re on track to get another 11 officers recruited, and I’m delighted that Carlow is on that list. This is just really good news for nature, and really good news for Carlow.

“Once they’re filled, these new posts will have an enormous impact on the ground in helping to deliver action for biodiversity, for wildlife and for habitats, and the new biodiversity officer will be available to support local communities in Carlow in their efforts too.

“Having access to this kind of expertise at a local level is invaluable to communities that want to engage with this issue and take real, practical action to address the biodiversity crisis. It’s a really important additional resource to empower our local authorities in their work to protect and restore nature.”