Pollinators are in decline, with one-third of our 98 wild bee species threatened with extinction from the island of Ireland. In publishing the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan (AIPP) in September 2015, Ireland became one of the first countries in Europe to address this issue – in order to ensure the sustainability of our food, avoid additional economic impacts on agriculture, and protect the health of the environment.

It was developed from the ground up as a voluntary Plan. On publication it was supported by 68 governmental and non governmental organisations, with this increasing to over 100 by the end of 2020.

Pollinators are under threat because we have drastically reduced the areas where they can nest and the amount of food our landscape provides for them. We can stand back and watch this happen, or we can try to do something. The All-Ireland Pollinator Plan is about all of us, from farmers to local authorities, to schools, gardeners and businesses, coming together to try to create an Ireland where pollinators can survive and thrive.

The Pollinator Plan provides an important framework to bring together pollinator initiatives from the North and South, and is the start of a process by which we can collectively take positive steps to protect our pollinators and the service they provide into the future. It is a shared plan of action. By working together we can help restore populations to healthy levels.

The AIPP 2015-2020 identified actions across five objectives. Within each objective, targets were set and actions identified to help achieve that target. It contained 81 actions in total.

  1. Making Ireland pollinator friendly (farmland, public land & private land)
  2. Raising awareness of pollinators and how to protect them
  3. Managed pollinators – supporting beekeepers and growers
  4. Expanding our knowledge on pollinators and pollination service
  5. Collecting evidence to track change and measure success

Sixty-eight governmental and non-governmental organisations came together to support the Plan upon publication, with this number rising to well over one hundred by the end of 2020. Responsibility for delivering the 81 actions was shared out between the supporting organisations, who included: Department of Agriculture, Food & the Marine, Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, Teagasc, Bord Bia, Northern Ireland Environment Agency, Heritage Council, Fáilte Ireland, An Taisce Green Schools, Federation of Irish Beekeepers’ Associations, Iarnrod Eireann, National Trust, RSPB, Tidy Towns, Transport NI, Ulster Farmers’ Union, Ulster Wildlife, and Waterways Ireland.

Pollinator Plan_cover

All-Ireland Pollinator Plan 2015-2020

Final Review of the AIPP 2015-2020 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Implementation of the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan 2015-2020 was coordinated by the National Biodiversity Data Centre. The Project Officer position was funded by The Heritage Council and Bord Bía from 2016 to 2019. In 2020, the Project Officer position was funded by SuperValu.

 

 

Development of the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan 2015-2020

The All-Ireland Pollinator Plan 2015-2020 was developed by a 15-member all-island steering group, representative of key stakeholders. Steps in the development of the first Plan are outlined below:

September 2014-January 2015: The Pollinator Plan was initiated by Úna FitzPatrick (National Biodiversity Data Centre) and Jane Stout (Trinity College Dublin) and then developed and agreed by the 15-member steering group.

February-March 2015: A draft Plan was made available for consultation. The consultation phase included both public and stakeholder engagement. A total of 70 organisations were invited to comment on the Plan; and submissions were received from 37 members of the public. During this phase, a one-day All-Ireland Pollinator Symposium was held in Waterford (17.2.15). This meeting introduced the plan and provided opportunity for public engagement.

All-Ireland Pollinator Plan 2015-2020_consultation draft

Response to public consultation on the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan


April-May 2015
: The Plan was revised in light of the consultation phase and a final version agreed by the steering group.

June 2015
: All supporting organisations signed off on the final version of the Plan.

17th September 2015: Following a design phase, the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan 2015-2020 was launched.