AQW 7060/17-22 Written question to the Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, considering puffins are threatened with extinction due to their precipitous and ongoing population decline, whether the species will be added to the Northern Ireland Priority Species List which is currently under review.
Asked by John Blair MLA on 16 September 2020
- Answered
- Written
- After due date
- Tabled
- 16 September 2020
- Answer due by
- 1 October 2020
- Answered
- 21 October 202035 days after tabling
- Priority question
- No
Answer
Northern Ireland’s main Atlantic puffin breeding site, with 98% of the local population, is protected as part of the Rathlin Island Special Protection Area.
My officials are currently undertaking a review of the Northern Ireland Priority Species List, and puffin has been included on the draft list. Once the updated list has been peer-reviewed, in taxonomic tranches, my officials will publish the revisions to the Northern Ireland Priority Species List on the DAERA website.