The Government has breached an EU law on the protection of natural habitats by authorising damaging building projects and not being active enough in protecting listed species, according to the European Court of Justice.
The 19-page opinion, by the court's advocate general, found in favour of all but one of the arguments brought by the European Commission - that the Government is not doing enough to establish a system of strict protection for a specific list of animals and plants including certain types of bats, dolphins, insects and flowers. The commission argued that of the entire list, Ireland only had one specific species protection plan - for the natterjack toad, which lives in sand dunes - and was therefore breaching the EU's law.
The advocate general also agreed with the commission's opinion that the Government was in breach of the 1992 Habitats Directive by failing to carry out impact studies before approving building or demolition projects, citing the Lough Rynn estate, the Corrib gas project and the Ennis bypass as examples.
The opinion points to the fact that for the Lough Rynn estate in Co Leitrim, development was approved by An Bord Pleanála in 2002 and work started in 2003, while a survey showing the negative impact the works would have on bats was only completed in 2004.
Environment experts also come under criticism for not being sufficiently knowledgable in their area of expertise.
The commission argued that, with the exception of the horseshoe bat and the natterjack toad, the authorities did not have enough information about the breeding grounds, resting places and threats to the species listed as needing protection.