CODE OF PRACTICE REQUIRED FOR BORD NA MONA PROJECT

CODE OF PRACTICE REQUIRED FOR BORD NA MONA PROJECT

IFA Deputy President Brian Rushe has acknowledged the statement sent to IFA by Bord na Móna yesterday.

However, he said the statement does not go far enough.

“What we need is a Code of Practice agreed between Bord na Móna and IFA,” he said.

“This is a huge project receiving over €100m in state support. It is vital that there is an agreed Code about how the work will be carried out and what processes there are if issues arise,” he said.

Bord na Móna has also issued a detailed document to IFA setting out responses to over 50 questions we posed following our public meeting in February.

These can be found on the IFA website at https://www.ifa.ie/rewetting-bogs-a-farmer-discussion/.

Ends.

April 27, 2021

HORTICULTURAL PEAT HARVESTING MUST RESUME IMMEDIATELY

HORTICULTURAL PEAT HARVESTING MUST RESUME IMMEDIATELY

Ahead of the first meeting of the Peat Consultation group taking place, IFA Horticulture Chairman Paul Brophy said the priority of the consultation group must be the resumption of the harvesting of horticultural peat immediately.

The Irish horticulture sector is a significant contributor to the Irish economy, with a farm gate value of €437 million. It employs an estimated 6,600 people, while a further 11,000 are employed in downstream businesses.

Paul Brophy recently addressed the Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture meeting and called for the urgent introduction of new legislation to allow horticultural peat harvesting to resume.

“It’s very contradictory of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Climate Action to recommend the expansion of the horticulture sector to avail of opportunities for import substitution and farm diversification, while the native raw material is being reduced,” he said.

Paul Brophy stressed that there is no viable alternative to peat in sections of the commercial horticulture sector.

As a major segment of the Irish horticulture sector relies on peat, particularly the mushroom and ornamental sectors, the ending of peat harvesting will have a negative impact.

“Producers will either have to close their business or import peat, which would add extra cost to their business. In the current market environment, it would be impossible to retrieve these costs from the market. This would also have adverse knock-on effects for the tillage, poultry and forestry sectors, resulting in a considerable blow to the rural economy.”

March 9, 2021

BOG REWETTING MEETING

BOG REWETTING MEETING

The IFA and Bord na Móna Working Group held their first virtual meeting on the Peatland Climate Action Scheme last week.

IFA Countryside Chairman Brian Rushe said it was a positive first meeting of the group.

He said, “I  look forward to working closely with Bord na Móna over the next four years as the Peatland Climate Action Scheme rehabilitation works get underway in the 82 bogs identified”.“The scale of the project is ambitious, and the timeline for implementation short, particularly in light of the current COVID-19 restrictions. This limits opportunities for local farmers and communities to engage with the process fully,” said Mr Rushe.

At the meeting, Bord na Móna gave a presentation on the Peatland Climate Action Scheme, which provided insight into the planning process, hydrological assessments, and the management of previous rehabilitation projects.

The IFA Countryside Chairman said, “It was beneficial to receive detailed information about the scheme but that many questions remained unanswered. Farmers have significant concerns. Bord na Móna must address them”.

During the meeting, it was agreed that Bord na Móna  would:

  • Provide written responses to the questions asked by farmers from the Q&A session at the recent IFA meeting on Bog Rewetting,
  • Give an overview of the hydrological assessment, including the procedures for estimating and predicting water on a specific site.

The Working Group will meet again in late March to continue to review the implementation of the Peatland Climate Action Scheme, particularly in the 19 bogs proposed for rehabilitation in 2021.

 

 

February 24, 2021