Ireland Steps Up Its Drive to Restore Nature and Rewild the Land

Ireland is stepping up its efforts to restore nature across the country, with a growing focus on buying land for conservation, restoring damaged peatlands and bringing back species that had all but vanished. The push reflects a wider shift in how the country values its natural landscapes and wildlife.

The scale of the challenge is considerable, but so too is the ambition behind the response. According to reports, a combination of state land purchases, large-scale habitat restoration and species reintroductions is now steadily reshaping the way nature is managed right across Ireland.

A small state estate

One of the underlying difficulties is how little land the state actually controls. According to reports, the state owns only about 8.5 percent of Ireland, which places clear limits on how much land can be directly managed for the benefit of nature and conservation.

The country's protected areas are similarly modest in their scale. According to reports, Ireland's national parks together cover fewer than 1,000 square kilometres, a relatively small footprint for a country now seeking to expand its efforts to protect wildlife and habitats.

Buying land for nature

To address this, the state has been steadily acquiring new land for conservation purposes. According to reports, the National Parks and Wildlife Service bought 3,614 hectares between 2020 and September 2025, spread across 16 counties, in a drive that has gathered pace in recent years.

One recent purchase illustrates the approach in practice. According to reports, in December 2025 some 40.5 hectares of land were acquired in Co. Wicklow to expand the oak forest at the Glen of the Downs, adding to an area that has long been valued for its native woodland.

A target of 10,000 hectares a year

The government has signalled that these purchases are only the beginning. According to reports, the Minister of State for Nature, Christopher O'Sullivan, has set out a target of acquiring 10,000 hectares of new land every year, a marked step up from recent levels of activity.

Such a target would represent a significant expansion of the state's conservation estate over time. If achieved, it would allow far more land to be dedicated to native woodland, peatland and other habitats, giving nature considerably more space in which to recover.

Restoring the peatlands

Alongside land purchases, the restoration of degraded peatlands has become a central plank of the effort. According to reports, Bord na Móna is already restoring 33,000 hectares of its total holding of 80,000 hectares, reversing decades of drainage and extraction on those bogs.

The country's forestry body faces a related challenge across a far larger estate. According to reports, Coillte manages some 440,000 hectares of land, much of it on peatlands that are unsuitable for commercial forestry, raising questions about how that land might best be used in future.

Bringing back lost species

Perhaps the most visible sign of change is the return of species that had disappeared from Irish skies. According to reports, some 245 white-tailed eagles, golden eagles and red kites have been released through a reintroduction programme run by the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

These efforts come against a decidedly sobering historical backdrop. According to reports, more than 100 species of plant and animal have gone extinct in Ireland as a result of human activities, underlining the scale of the losses that restoration is now trying to reverse.

Rewilding Wild Nephin

One of the most ambitious projects is unfolding in the west of the country. According to reports, renewed efforts are under way to restore the upland habitats of Wild Nephin National Park in County Mayo, allowing damaged landscapes there the chance to recover over time.

Supporters argue that such rewilding could bring benefits well beyond wildlife alone. According to reports, restoring these landscapes could help attenuate flooding, enhance the carbon stored in soils and revive rivers for wild salmon and trout, offering a glimpse of what a restored Irish countryside might one day look like.