Chink of light emerges in turf-cutting dispute

A chink of light may be on the horizon for turf-cutters at some of the 13 protected bogs across Co Galway who have been in dispute with the authorities for the past two years when a National Raised Bog Management Plan is published later this year.

Senior officials at the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht have told Galway’s lone Minister of State Ciaran Cannon that the plan may “unlock some limited flexibility” under the EU Habitats Directive to find solutions to the conflict which has raged since the ban on cutting came into effect at the start of last year.

Officials are currently working on the plan, which they expect to publish in the Autumn, and much of their focus is on protected Special Area of Conservation (SAC) bogs where relocation is not an option.

“This may be of particularly note in County Galway where the provision of relocation has, in some cases, been limited,” said a senior official in correspondence with Minister Cannon which has been seen by the Connacht Tribune.

“The aim is to conclude this work as soon as possible so that my Department can actively engage with the European Commission in seeking agreement on the long term strategy for the management of these bogs, including any options for flexibility in the most difficult of cases.”

While officials have denied the prospect of dramatic u-turns at SAC bogs such as Barroughter and Clonmoylan, where turf was cut ‘illegally’ last weekend, it is understood scientific, technical, hydrological, and environmental factors may be taken into account at the most problematic of the 53 SACs across the country.

Cutting was banned at the SACs at the start of last year, with the Government facing the prospect of fines of €25,000 per day from the European Commission for failing to protect the bogs.

It is envisaged that the draft plan which is being worked on by consultants can be discussed with senior EC officials towards the end of the year.

But Irish Government officials have warned that securing European Commission agreement to any flexibility will be more difficult where there is a concerted effort to defy the law in regard to the protection of these sites.

Turf-cutters have estimated that more than 30 of the 53 protected raised bogs have been cut this summer, in defiance of the EU Habitats Directives, after the bogs at Clonmoylan and Barroughter, near Portumna, were cut last weekend.

See full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune.