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The window in which farmers can carry out the controlled burning of vegetation will not be extended into March.
Under the Wildlife Act the cutting, grubbing, burning or destruction of vegetation is not permitted between 1 March and 31 August. However, the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht can allow controlled burning in March under certain circumstances.
Minister Josepha Madigan said Met Éireann data showed an extension would be unwarranted at this time.
Weather conditions
“Weather conditions would not have precluded landowners from burning vegetation during the six-month period when this could have been done under the law and accordingly there is no basis for me to extend the legal period for burning into March.”
Nationally, rainfall for the six-month open period was 10.5% below the 30-year mean.
Minister Madigan also said an extension would be irresponsible given the huge concern over the outbreak of several wildfires in the Dublin/Wicklow Mountains.
Blanket approval
“The burning provision in Section 7(1) of the Heritage Act was never intended to be a blanket approval for widespread nationwide burning of vegetation during the month of March.
“It has always been made clear that the provision was designed as a failsafe mechanism to be deployed to facilitate landowners to burn vegetation during March if weather conditions during the prescribed open period for burning were such as to prevent such burning.”
Criticism
The IFA national hill farming chair Flor McCarthy criticised the Minister's decision not to allow the managed burning of gorse in March.
He said the move indicated a lack of understanding of the practical issues farmers faced in managing hill farms.
"The Minister has failed to take account of how farmers manage their hill land responsibly and where land is burned, it is done in a managed way."
Strong warning
The Department of Agriculture issued a "strong warning" to farmers this Friday that those burning land between now and 31 August risk prosecution and losing their farm payments.
"Inclusion of illegally burnt land in the 2019 Basic Payment Scheme application may result in reduced payment and penalties under this scheme and the other area-based schemes, e.g. Areas of Natural Constraints Scheme," the Department said, adding that burning land may also lead to penalties for neighbours.
The fire danger rating set by the Forest Service is currently status yellow.
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