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DEAR SIR: It was with dismay that I read an article (13 March) in the Irish Farmers Journal entitled “Working with farmers to slow down floodwaters” where there was a presentation to TDs (organised by Sinn Féin) from Luke Neal of the Shropshire Wildlife Trust.
The article referenced work in the UK that recommends blocking rivers to slow up water flow, which led to the flooding of land.
IFA totally rejects such an approach as the comments suggest that farmland becomes a dumping ground for water at a time of excessive rainfall.
This would devalue land and would erode the potential of land to derive an income. In discussions on the CFRAMS flood management plans for the various river catchment areas, IFA has been very clear with the OPW and Minister Kevin Boxer Moran that farmland as well as towns and villages must be protected.
A plan involving river maintenance, dredging and the removal of obstacles of the flow of rivers must be the priority.
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