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PART IINTRODUCTORY

Title and commencement

1.  This Order may be cited as the Nature Conservation and Amenity Lands (Northern Ireland) Order 1985 and shall come into operation on the expiration of the period of two months from the day on which it is made.

Interpretation

2.—(1) The M1 Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954 shall apply to Article 1 and the following provisions of this Order as it applies to a Measure of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

(2) In this Order—

“Committee for Nature Conservation” means the committee established under Article 5;

“the Department” means the Department of the Environment;

“derelict site” means land, which the Department after consultation with the district council within whose district the land is situated, considers as detracting from the amenity of the area by reason of any unsightly, dilapidated or neglected structure or works or unsightly vegetation, refuse or waste material on the land;

“local or public authority” includes any authority or body specified in paragraph 1 of Schedule 1 to the F1 Financial Provisions (Northern Ireland) Order 1983 as an authority or body to whom government loans may be made by the Department of Finance and Personnel under F1 Article 8 of that Order;

“National Park” means an area designated as a National Park under Article 12;

“nature conservation” means the conservation of flora, fauna and geological and physiographical features;

“nature reserve” means any area reserved, managed and used for the purpose of—

(a)conserving flora, fauna or features of geological, physiographical or other scientific or special interest therein; or

(b)providing, under suitable conditions and control, special opportunities for the study of, and research into, matters relating to flora and fauna and the physical conditions in which they live, or for the study of features of geological, physiographical or other scientific or special interest therein;

or for both of those purposes;

“owner”, in relation to any land, means any person (other than a mortgagee not in possession) who is the holder of or who is for the time being entitled to sell or otherwise dispose of the fee simple (including a fee farm grant) of the land or any person entitled to possession of the land by virtue of any estate in the land other than a mere licence;

“statutory provision” has the meaning given in section 1(f) of the M2 Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954;

“Ulster Countryside Committee” means the committee referred to in Article 11;

“voluntary body” means any body of persons, whether corporate or unincorporate carrying on or proposing to carry on an undertaking otherwise than for profit.

(3) Nothing in this Order shall make unlawful anything done under the M3 Diseases of Animals (Northern Ireland) Order 1981.

PART IINATURE CONSERVATION AND ENJOYMENT OF THE COUNTRYSIDE

Nature conservation and enjoyment of the countryside

3.—(1) The functions of the Department shall include formulating and implementing policies for nature conservation and the conservation and enhancement of the natural beauty and amenity of the countryside.

(2) In exercise of its functions under paragraph (1) (and without prejudice to the generality of that paragraph), the Department may—

(a)carry out, commission, or support by financial means or otherwise, such inquiries, investigations or researches as it considers necessary or expedient;

(b)provide advice and disseminate knowledge about nature conservation and the conservation and enhancement of the natural beauty and amenity of the countryside;

(c)establish, manage and maintain nature reserves in Northern Ireland;

(d)take such steps as it considers expedient to encourage the provision and improvement, for persons resorting to the countryside, of facilities for the enjoyment of the countryside and open-air recreation in the countryside.

(3) The Department—

(a)may provide, or assist in the provision of, publicity, mapping and information services relating to the countryside, to places of beauty and interest therein; and

(b)shall take such steps as appear to it expedient for securing that suitable methods of publicity are used for the prevention of damage in the countryside and for encouraging a proper standard of behaviour on the part of persons resorting to the countryside.

Duty of public bodies

4.—(1) In exercising functions relating to land under any statutory provision, public bodies shall have regard to the need to conserve the natural beauty and amenity of the countryside and the need to protect (so far as reasonably practicable) flora, fauna and geological and physiographical features of the countryside from any harmful effects which might result from the exercise of such functions.

(2) In paragraph (1) the expression “public bodies” includes government departments, district councils and statutory undertakers, and any trustees, commissioners, board or other persons who, as a public body and not for their own profit, act under any statutory provision for the improvement of any place or the production or supply of any commodity or service.

The Committee for Nature Conservation

(2) The Committee for Nature Conservation shall—

(a)exercise the functions conferred on it by this Order; and

(b)advise the Department on matters relating to nature conservation.

Para. (3) rep. by 1989 NI 3