Limerick farmers face ‘burning’ issues as permits are suspended

FARMER and councillor, Liam Galvin, said he “couldn’t believe” what he was seeing when he got an email from the council’s planning and environmental department.

The subject read: “Prohibition of Waste Disposal by Burning Regulations.” The email says, “I am writing to inform you that the issuing of permits for the burning of agricultural waste has been suspended on foot of a Department of Environment and Climate Change direction”.

Cllr Galvin asks what are farmers supposed to do to dispose of the overgrowth?

“It’s fine if you are talking about the good land but you come down to land in the disadvantaged areas, where you have scrub, furze bushes, sallies, rushes the height of myself. What is supposed to be done with those?

“I do understand what they are trying to do – they are trying to stop the gorse fires. Farmers are very easy targets because it is very easy to go after the farmer, all they have to do is stop their Single Farm Payment. They have that hanging over the farmers,” said Cllr Galvin.

He says they should treat farmers with a “small bit of respect”.

“We've been crippled now with costs. We have been crippled with the carbon emissions, and now to land this up on top of us. I'm led to believe it was addressed in parliament and it was deferred. 

“But it is simply not good enough to go making those statements without putting at least something in place – where were the farmers to dispose of all this overgrowth? And the second question I'll ask is at what cost is it going to be to the farmer again?”

Developing rural Limerick: New book highlights role of Limerick farmers in an agricultural revolution

The Abbeyfeale man said burning of waste on farms at certain times of the year has been going on “since Jesus was a boy”.

“But make no mistake about it, we are not fools. We do understand about global warming but I do want to give the farming community a chance to live and a chance to survive. Things are serious out there at the moment - the rising costs that are there for the farmer.”

Cllr Galvin bought fertiliser for €315 per tonne last year and recently bought one brand this year for €820 and the other brand at €760 a tonne.

“My feed stuff last year was €242 a tonne, this year its gone up to €335. To fertilise one acre of silage this year is going to cost me €123 and that’s before you pay the contractor.

“People won't survive. I don’t know what people are going to do. I think it’s bloody appalling the way the fertiliser price rise has been handled. I’m disappointed the Minister of Agriculture didn’t implement a scheme and cap it – give an allowance until the cost of fertiliser comes back down. It should have been done. If you don’t fertilise the land you will have nothing only weeds – that’s all that will grow,” said Cllr Galvin.

And while the burning ban may be deferred currently it looks like you won’t be able to burn off the weeds in the future either, said Cllr Galvin.

If this blanket ban does come into force, he says a method of disposing of the product needs to be implemented free of charge.

“Local authorities are sending out enforcement letters every day to landowners to cut their hedges. When you cut the hedges what are you supposed to do with hedge cuttings?

“If he doesn’t cut them he'll be prosecuted, if he cuts them and burns them he will be prosecuted. What they are doing here is they are really standing down on top of the farming community. I think its about time somebody stood up to them and said hold on a minute and stop,” concluded Cllr Galvin.