Coillte confirms to IFA They’re not Working on Any Further Partnerships with Funds

Coillte confirms to IFA They’re not Working on Any Further Partnerships with Funds

The IFA met with Coillte CEO Imelda Hurley and Managing Director Mark Carlin yesterday in the Irish Farm Centre to discuss the controversy over Coillte working with a private equity fund to plant forestry in Ireland.

IFA Farm Forestry Chair Jason Fleming said there was a robust discussion. Coillte were left in no doubt that farmers were vehemently opposed to a State-owned forestry company facilitating the purchase of private lands for investors and funds.

“Coillte did confirm that they were not working on any further projects with private funds,” he said.

“Coillte and the Government need to go back to the drawing board and provide assurances to farmers and rural communities that alternative farmer-based solutions will be identified to support the national afforestation target being met,” he said.

He said that IFA received assurances at the meeting that Coillte is not in negotiations with any other funds at present and that the Irish Strategic Forestry Fund planned to afforest between 3,000 to 3,500 hectares over the next five years.

“The root cause of the problem here is that the Government has provided incentives for non-farmers to get involved in forestry as a quick fix to increase planting rather than addressing the underlying issues which are putting farmers off getting involved,” he said.

“The new forestry programmes have yet to be approved by the EU. This issue must be addressed before the plan is finalised,” he said.

“Since forest premium parity was introduced by the Government in 2014, over 40% of the afforestation programme has been undertaken by non-farmers including funds. This is not a sustainable forestry model and needs to be reviewed immediately in advance of submitting the new Forestry Programme to the EU for approval.”

He said the impact on rural communities is unknown and it’s reckless for the Government to continue to fund investor planting without fully understanding the impact.

Jason Fleming said the real issues that need to be addressed include the licensing system; the amount of land that is currently ineligible for planting; ash dieback compensation; the 35% of land area that has to be set aside for biodiversity that receives no payment beyond the premium; and the replanting obligation.

“The Government must address these issues if we are to have any chance of reaching our forestry targets,” he said.

Ends.

January 26, 2023

Controlled Burning Period Must Be Extended to Include March – IFA

Controlled Burning Period Must Be Extended to Include March – IFA

The IFA National Hill Farming Chairman Cáillin Conneely has called on the Heritage Minister Malcolm Noonan to ensure the managed burning of gorse is allowed in March.

At a meeting with the Minister, Cáillin Conneely said the extension by a month will bring a number of benefits. It will allow better vegetative management; help farmers keep land eligible for various CAP schemes; and reduce uncontrolled wildfires.

“We want to maintain farming in these areas and we fully respect the ecological value of lands with gorse and certain types of grass species.  Without farming, these areas would go wild and the incidence of wildfires would significantly increase,” he said.

“The Minister must take account of how farmers manage their hill land responsibly.  Where land is burned, it’s done in a managed way.  Controlled burning will significantly reduce the possibility of uncontrolled fires in April and May like we have seen in the past”.

“Controlled gorse burning before the end of February can be difficult to achieve due to the wetter ground conditions. These conditions prove to be drier in March,” he said.

“Flexibility will allow hill famers to deal with the practical issues they face in managing their hill farms. Wildfires we have seen in the past can be avoided if the window is extended to include the month of March,” he said.

February 18, 2022

IFA and Bord Gáis Energy launch new solar energy pilot 

IFA and Bord Gáis Energy launch new solar energy pilot 

IFA and Bord Gáis Energy launched a comprehensive solar pilot for farmers today.  The project, which has been in development for over a year, reached a key milestone this week with the successful installation and commissioning of two farms.

At the launch, James Kelly, IFA’s Director of Organisation said, “This important partnership with Bord Gáis Energy will see solar energy installations on up to a further 15 farms, across a number of sectors and geographies. The purpose of this pilot is to establish what works commercially and the challenges that create barriers to implementation. The farming community want to play an active part in the green agenda, and this is a very real demonstration of this commitment which also reduces cost inputs for farmers as well as helping Government deliver on the 2030 carbon reduction targets.”

Martin Stapleton, Chairman of IFA Member Services said, “IFA and Bord Gáis Energy have invested a significant amount of time in this project. For rooftop solar on farms to be adopted in large numbers, there is a need for up to a 60% capital grant to achieve a reasonable payback. To ensure that there is successful adoption of solar, it must be clear that it does not take from any existing capital grants open to farmers.”

Colin Bebbington, Director Energy, Marketing and Data at Bord Gáis Energy said “Bord Gáis Energy is committed to contributing to a net zero economy and helping our customers transition affordably to a lower carbon future. We have a longstanding relationship with the IFA and we’re proud to be working together on this initiative which will drive solar energy generation on farms, helping farmers to lower their carbon footprint which leads to long term sustainable farming.”

For further information on this comprehensive pilot, visit ifa.ie/solar

Ends

 

January 20, 2022

Joining forces in weather forecasting and climate research

Joining forces in weather forecasting and climate research

Met Éireann has joined forces with the National Weather Services of Denmark, Iceland and the Netherlands to jointly operate a new supercomputer that will bring significant advancements to short-term weather forecasting.

Wednesday 10th November 2021 – Today, on World Science Day, Met Éireann announced that it is to join forces with national weather services in Denmark, Iceland and the Netherlands, to jointly operate a new supercomputer that will bring significant advancements to short-term weather forecasting.

As well as taking short-term weather forecasting to the next level, the new multimillion High-Performance Computer built by Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) will be used to advance climate science research, supporting our Governments’ and businesses with long-term decisions and policy-making as we continue to prepare for and mitigate the impacts of climate change.

With global temperatures projected to increase further over the next decades, weather patterns are expected to become more extreme and more challenging to forecast.  The “United Weather Centres-West” collaboration is a scientific and technical response to this challenge, with four countries jointly operating a supercomputer that will allow more timely and accurate weather forecasts and warnings to help protect life and property.

Planned to be operational by early 2023, the new supercomputer will provide high-resolution weather forecasts that will be used to:

  • Provide more accurate and timely weather warnings that will allow our emergency services to prepare for potential impacts of severe weather;
  • Help people and communities make better decisions to protect lives, homes and businesses when impacted by extreme weather events such as heatwaves, flooding or heavy snow;
  • Enable the agricultural sector to make earlier decisions to protect and better manage their crops and livestock;
  • Provide more timely and focused information to marine communities;
  • Support the transport and energy sectors with more detailed and timely weather information to allow increased economic and environmental benefits.

An ambitious and necessary collaboration

The collaboration between Met Éireann, the Danish Meteorological Institute, Icelandic Meteorological Office and the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute, is part of the “United Weather Centres-West” initiative.  This is part of a broader collaboration between ten national weather services in Europe, known as United Weather Centres (UWC), which plans to operate a common multi-national weather forecasting system by the end of the decade.

Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien TD, said: “As we continue to see the impacts of extreme weather from a changing climate both around the world and closer to home, it has never been more important to provide accurate and timely weather information. 

“With Met Éireann uniting their scientific expertise and excellence in numerical weather prediction with the national weather services in Denmark, Iceland and the Netherlands, we will be able to provide more efficient and reliable weather forecasts and warnings to all our citizens to help them make better decisions to protect lives, homes and property”.

 

Uniting expertise in one High-Performance Computer

Modern weather forecasting is based on Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) which requires vast amounts of data from weather observations, atmospheric conditions and satellite imagery, as well as significant processing power only available through High Performance Computing (HPC).  By combining our national resources, the new UWC-West supercomputer will represent a huge leap in weather forecasting capabilities to each country – it will perform 4,000 trillion calculations per second and handle millions of weather observations every 24 hours – this will produce detailed weather forecasts every hour, which is especially critical ahead of severe weather.

Eoin Moran, Director of Met Éireann, said: “The UWC-West supercomputer is the first step in a powerful collaboration between weather services in Europe which will allow Ireland to meet the growing challenge of forecasting high impact weather events with much greater confidence. Our countries have a long history of working together in weather prediction research. Denmark, The Netherlands, Iceland and Ireland bound the North East Atlantic Area and are now combining resources to best predict the weather that impacts this region. This is particularly important in the context of the influence of climate change on the predictably of weather systems as the new supercomputer will allow for the incorporation of the most up to date weather forecasting methodologies.”

A sustainable solution

Powered entirely by renewable Icelandic hydropower and geothermal energy sources and taking advantage of the local temperate climate that will keep the supercomputer components cool, the running costs and CO2 footprint will be kept to a minimum, saving tonnes of CO2 in line with the four nations’ commitments towards net-zero.

Additional Information

 

Contact Details

For enquiries or to arrange interviews please contact Met Éireann Communications Meteorologist on 0860762923 or via [email protected]

 

Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage Press Office

Tel: (01) 888 2638 (direct)

Email: [email protected]

Website: gov.ie/housing

Twitter: @DeptHousingIRL

November 10, 2021

Carbon Budget Will Have Serious Impact on Rural Economy

Carbon Budget Will Have Serious Impact on Rural Economy

IFA President Tim Cullinan said the carbon budget staging announced by the Climate Change Advisory Council  and the sectoral emissions ceilings reported, will have serious repercussions for farming.

“Our most productive farmers simply cannot remain viable if agriculture has to reduce emissions by between 21% and 30% as has been reported. This will have profound implications for the rural economy,” he said.

“Some may compare the carbon budget, and the sectoral ceilings that had been proposed, to other sectors and think agriculture has got a fair deal, but the Government has not considered the implications for individual farmers and the sector,” he said.

“For most people, climate action will impact on their lifestyle. For farmers, it will impact on our livelihoods,” he said.

“It’s also important to realise that increases in the cost of energy and transport fuel are already impacting on the viability of farms and rural businesses,” he said.

“The Government must now engage in meaningful negotiation with farmers to make a plan for the sector that can contribute to emissions reduction, but which does not impact on farmer’s livelihoods. In addition, proper funding must be in place to help farmers implement climate action measures,” he said.

“The frustration for farmers is that they know that if less food is produced in Ireland, it will be produced elsewhere, with a higher carbon footprint,” he said.

“The world’s population is growing and is likely to increase from 7.5 billion today to 10 billion by 2050. More food will be needed, not less,” he said.

“There is a huge amount of misinformation out there. Ireland’s grass-based system is extremely efficient. The Government must support farmers, not regulate them out of business,” he said.

Ends.

October 28, 2021

New Storm Names Announced for 2021-2022

New Storm Names Announced for 2021-2022

Met Éireann, along with the Met Office and KNMI – the national weather services of the UK and Netherlands, have today (Wednesday September 1st) released the new list of storm names for the 2021-22 storm season.

Since 2014 Met Éireann and the Met Office have been working together on the Storm Names partnership to help raise awareness of the potential impacts of severe weather and were joined by KMNI in 2019.

Similar to previous years, each weather service has contributed names reflective of their nation and culture, mainly suggested by members of the public.  Irish names that have made it on to this year’s list include Barra (Finbarr), Méabh, Pól and Seán.  In a recent public vote Diarmuid was put to a vote along with Duncan, Dudley and Dafydd… and Dudley was the winner, perhaps reflective of the magic of Harry Potter.

Met Éireann’s Head of Forecasting, Evelyn Cusack said:

“Last winter was relatively quiet with only one storm named by Met Éireann, Storm Aiden at Halloween.  We are now preparing for the autumn and winter months ahead with a new list of storm names for 2021-22 and for whatever weather may come to our shores.

“Once again Met Éireann will continue to work with our national weather service colleagues in the UK and Netherlands, by continuing to provide a clear and consistent message to the public and encouraging people to take action to prevent harm to themselves or to their properties at times of severe weather.”

Evelyn continued:

“Also this month we are delighted to see the launch of our new audio weather forecasts, where people can listen to the latest forecast delivered by our team of Met Éireann forecasters.”

Will Lang, Head of the National Severe Weather Warning Service at the Met Office, said:

 “This is now the seventh year of us naming storms with our European partners and we look forward to continuing to work together with them to raise awareness around the impacts of severe weather in order to help keep people from all nations safe. 

 “We’re all aware of some of the severe weather that has been witnessed across Europe and globally in recent months and we work to use any tool at our disposal to ensure the public is informed of potential risks, and naming storms is just one way we do that.” 

 Gerard van der Steenhoven, Director General at KNMI, said:

“Storms are not confined to national borders, it makes a lot of sense to given common names to such extreme weather events. We gladly continue our collaboration with the UK Met Office and Met Éireann on storm forecasting. It is a great privilege and advantage to work in close co-operation with our colleagues from Ireland and the UK in the communication about storms. All people exposed to such impeding extreme weather events will benefit.”

September 1, 2021

Inland Fisheries Ireland issues Pacific pink salmon alert

Inland Fisheries Ireland issues Pacific pink salmon alert

Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI), the state agency responsible for the protection and conservation of freshwater fish and habitats,  has issued an alert, asking the angling community and general public to report any sightings of Pacific pink salmon.

Also known as ‘humpback’ salmon, pink salmon were very rare in Irish waters until 2017 and are believed to have originated from stocking programmes in Russia. Scientists at Inland Fisheries Ireland are concerned that if there are large numbers of the non-native species in Irish rivers, this may have negative impacts on Ireland’s salmon and trout populations in the future.

Dr. Paddy Gargan with Inland Fisheries Ireland explains: “If Pacific pink salmon become established in Irish rivers, they will be competing with Irish salmon and trout for food and space. Pink salmon also display aggressive behaviour towards native fish and a large invasion of pink salmon could push out Atlantic salmon and trout from holding pools into smaller channels.”

 Inland Fisheries Ireland has published a guide on its website to help the public identify a Pacific pink salmon, which has large oval black spots on its tail. Males also develop a pronounced ‘humpback’.

Appealing for help from the angling community and general public, Dr. Gargan added:  “There is only limited information currently available to assess the threat from Pacific pink salmon, so we are asking the angling community and general public to report any sightings to Inland Fisheries Ireland by telephoning our 24 hour confidential hotline on 1890 34 74 24.”

The first reported catch of a Pacific pink salmon in Ireland this year was in the Ridge Pool, Moy Fishery (Co. Mayo) on 27th June 2021. Anglers across the country are also being asked to report any further catches of Pacific pink salmon to Inland Fisheries Ireland and to assist with research efforts by following these steps:

  • Keep the Pacific pink salmon and do not release it back into the water, even in rivers that are only open for ‘catch and release’ angling.
  • Record the date and location of capture, and the length and weight of the fish.
  • Take a photograph of the fish and keep a copy of the image.
  • Tag the fish and please report it to Inland Fisheries Ireland as soon as possible by telephoning 1890 34 74 24. Inland Fisheries Ireland will arrange collection of Pacific pink salmon catches for further analysis and will also promptly issue replacement tags to anglers.

Further information about the conservation and research work of Inland Fisheries Ireland can be found at www.fisheriesireland.ie

ENDS

For media information:

Sarah Bohan/ Sadhbh O’Neill

Communications

Inland Fisheries Ireland

E: [email protected]/ [email protected]

T: 087 6539936 / 087 1019998

July 6, 2021

New Study Reveals the Migration Route of Atlantic Salmon at Sea

New Study Reveals the Migration Route of Atlantic Salmon at Sea

Inland Fisheries Ireland involved in major international research study, tracking salmon from Barrow, Nore, Suir and Blackwater Rivers

A new study published in the NATURE Journal this month, Scientific Reports, reveals the marine migration route of Atlantic salmon in the North Atlantic, including Irish salmon.

The study, led by the Arctic University of Norway, involved a cooperative research study by ten Universities and Institutions across Europe, including Inland Fisheries Ireland. The study involved tagging 204 salmon kelts with satellite tags from seven European countries and the east coast of North America, including salmon from the Barrow, Nore, Suir and Blackwater Rivers in Ireland, and tracked them during their oceanic migration.

Salmon travelled to oceanic fronts, but with specific patterns. Norwegian and Danish salmon rapidly migrate north and north-west toward the North Atlantic Ocean between Iceland and Svalbard. In contrast, Irish salmon migrated primarily westward towards South and East Greenland. Despite the variation in migration patterns among populations, most individual salmon migrated to polar ocean frontal areas.

One of the authors of the study, Dr Paddy Gargan of Inland Fisheries Ireland, said: “As we know, water temperatures have increased in the north Atlantic over the last few decades. This new research is suggesting that this type of climate change may have greater impact on salmon populations originating further south, like Ireland. This is because distances and time required to travel to feeding areas will increase if the boundary between Atlantic and Arctic waters move northward because of ocean warming.”

The study found that salmon released further south tended to cover longer migration distances, with a straight-line distance tracked as far as 2,400 km for one salmon tagged from River Suir in Ireland. Tagged salmon spent 80% of their time foraging at the surface and performed occasional dives of up to 870m.

Overall, populations closest in proximity tended to converge in their oceanic feeding area, but taken together the salmon populations exploit a very large part of the ocean. Given that Atlantic salmon from different geographic locations feed in distinct areas at sea, they experience different temperature regimes. For example, Irish salmon experienced much warmer temperatures, ranging from 5 to 16°C, than Norwegian and Danish salmon which experienced temperatures ranging from 0 to 11°C. These differences not only contribute to variation in growth and survival across populations, but also are likely to affect Atlantic salmon populations differently with changing climate.

Southernmost populations, like those of Ireland, are more at risk than northernmost populations as migration distances are likely to become longer, or more variable, thereby decreasing feeding time, with important consequences for the marine survival and productivity of different populations.

Taken together, these findings suggest that a common marine factor responsible for the decline in Atlantic salmon is unlikely. Importantly, this means conservation efforts should be focused locally, such as during the freshwater phase.

Dr Cathal Gallagher is the Head of Research with Inland Fisheries Ireland and he explains why the state agency was keen to support the study, saying: “Although the Atlantic salmon is one of the world’s most studied fish, detailed knowledge of its migration route at sea has been limited until now. This important large-scale study highlights the vulnerability of salmon populations to climate change and emphasises the need for continued conservation, to protect Atlantic salmon and its habitats.”

The full study, ‘Redefining the oceanic distribution of Atlantic salmon,’ can be found at Nature.com at https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-91137-y

ENDS

June 17, 2021

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

FARMERS AND RURAL IRELAND ARE SUPPORTIVE OF CLIMATE ACTION

FARMERS AND RURAL IRELAND ARE SUPPORTIVE OF CLIMATE ACTION

Farmers and Rural Ireland Are Supportive of Climate Action

IFA President Tim Cullinan said that farmers and rural Ireland support climate action. However, any proposed changes arising from the new Climate Action Bill must be agreed upon with farmers.

“I believe that the vast majority of Irish citizens are proud of our farming and the food we produce and want to see the sector continuing to flourish sustainably,” he said.

“There are several important provisions in the new Climate Bill that policymakers will have to consider, which will protect the farming sector,” he said.

The IFA President was speaking as part of his opening address to the Smart Farming Spring Seminar this morning, a collaborative programme in conjunction with the EPA that works with farmers to support change at farm level.

IFA has been engaging at all levels to ensure that farming is treated fairly in the climate action process. The new Climate Bill states that in implementing the Bill, the Minister ‘shall’ have regard to ‘the special economic and social role of agriculture including with regards to the distinct characteristics of biogenic methane’.

It also says that the Minister shall have regard to the risk of ‘carbon leakage’, resulting in more emissions in other countries as a result of reductions.

“Our grass-based production systems is extremely efficient from a carbon perspective. It makes no sense to drive food production elsewhere, which will certainly result in carbon leakage as global food demand is increasing. The Minister is required to take this into account when framing any new targets,” he said.

Tim Cullinan said that the suggestion in some quarters that the number of cattle in Ireland will reduce by 51% due to the Climate Bill is nonsense.

“The draft Agri-Food strategy published at the weekend proposes a 10% reduction in biogenic methane. This target will be very challenging, but I believe that we can achieve this by adapting practices and developing technology while still developing our sector.”

“The key issue in the weeks and months ahead is that there is full engagement with farmers on any proposals. It’s easy to set targets, but they must be realistic and achievable and strike the right balance between the three pillars of sustainability – environmental, economic and social,” he said.

April 22, 2021