I am living and working in Carlow. I am very concerned about the biodiversity crisis. 200 species a day are becoming extinct. This is a global issue but it is also a local issue. We as a county need to be doing our utmost to improve the biodiversity and wildlife of our county. To do this the county needs a biodiversity officer who will provide the guidance and knowledge on what we should be doing and how to do it. We need to act now to address this very serious issue and hiring a biodiversity officer would be a great step forward to supporting the county council and all its department to act to stop the loss of flaura and fauna in our county and also to enhance and improve it. The biodiversity officer will also be able to advise and support voluntary groups, residents groups, farming groups and many of our other groups and citizens of Carlow to improve our biodiversity.