The European Commission is to refer Ireland to the European Court of Justice for failure to apply the habitats directive in protecting designated raised bog and blanket bogs from turf cutting.
Ecologist Pádraic Fogarty said the decision was “disgraceful”, given it was 13 years since the original complaint was made.
The commission decided on Wednesday to refer the Government to the court. The directive requires member states to designate their most precious natural habitats and to protect them from harmful activities – especially where they are designated as special areas of conservation.
Bog lands in Ireland continue to be degraded through drainage and turf cutting activities, and insufficient action is being taken to restore the sites, it concluded.
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“These areas are biodiversity hotspots playing host to important insect and bird species. They are categorised as ‘priority’ habitats under the directive due to their unique qualities. Peat bogs are also vital carbon sinks when healthy, while a UN report estimated that Ireland’s degraded peatlands emit 21.5 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year,” it added.
Mr Fogarty said the move comes 13 years after the first warning, adding “why are we doing nothing to prevent the disappearance of our most important habitats?”
He said environmental groups highlighting concerns believed “these problems would be solved a long time ago”, after a national peatlands strategy was put in place and agreements were reached with turf cutters.
Some progress was being made with raised bogs concentrated in the Midlands, but turf cutting was continuing on a quarter of sites, which he attributed to the Government having no backbone is curbing extraction, he added.
Nothing was being done, he said, with blanket bogs in upland areas – mostly in the west of Ireland – where it was unclear on the extent of turf cutting being allowed.
He predicted heavy fines were likely to be imposed, but believed “the Government is not particularly scared by the threat of fines”. They were more concerned about the political backlash if they address the issue, Mr Fogarty said.
He understood why the Government did not want to be seen to be heavy-handed by, for example, using helicopters to monitor bogs, but there were other ways of dealing with the problem.
“Despite some progress, the Irish authorities have not fully addressed the shortcomings,” the Commission said. “While some restoration work has been undertaken on raised bog sites, no action has been taken regarding blanket bog sites where Ireland has failed to put in place an effective regulatory regime to protect these unique bog sites”.
In a statement, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage said the state had “invested significantly since 2011 in the conservation and restoration of our peatlands”. It said progress included an overall decrease in turf cutting.
“There has been a complete cessation of turf-cutting on almost 80 per cent of the raised bog SACs since 2011 and a reduction of almost 40 per cent on 2022 turf cutting levels in 2023 on raised bogs. Further reductions are expected this year as a result of discussions ongoing presently with turf cutting contractors and their representatives. This is a site by site and season by season endeavour and huge progress is being made by negotiation and agreement,” it said.
The department said scientific analysis shows an improvement in habitat quality on raised bog SACs and that the level of active turf cutting on the blanket bog SACs is lower than previously considered.
“The department will carefully consider the details of the case once papers are received from the European Commission regarding its referral to the Court of Justice of the European Union. In the meantime, the department will continue to implement, prioritise, and advance measures to conserve our protected peatlands in consultation with stakeholders,” it said.
Seán Canney, an Independent TD for Galway East, said the Government should defend the rights of people to cut turf for their own use.
“At present people who are cutting turf are doing so as the only way of heating their homes, providing hot water, washing clothes and cooking meals for their families. The alternative form of heating is too expensive for most people to install, and the running cost are not affordable to most families.
“The Habitats Directive requires member states to protect their most precious natural habitats but where does the Irish citizen fit in, and rights of a citizen to live and provide heat and food for their family. Surely human life is more precious than a bog.”
Independent TD for Roscommon-Galway Michael Fitzmaurice said the European Commission’s decision had “obliterated years of progress made between NPWS and domestic turf-cutters and contractors”.
Deputy Fitzmaurice, Chairman of the Turf Cutters and Contractors Association (TCCA), said the decision will “be felt across the country, undermining the delicate balance achieved between national authorities and those directly impacted by the Habitats Directive”.
The independent TD has convened a meeting of the TCCA where a response will be discussed, including the possibility of withdrawing co-operation in relation to the rewetting of lands.
“Today’s decision creates the serious risk that we will see a complete breakdown in co-operation between stakeholders domestically, and may very well see a return to tensions on Irish bogs which in recent years had been defused,” he said.
“The day of turf cutting is, sadly, coming to an end,” he said, suggesting changing domestic practices – such as the construction of houses without chimneys – were already leading towards a natural resolution of the issue within a generation.
“The EU has once again shown that it is out of touch with reality and is more interested in using a hammer to crack this nut than diplomacy which is my book is the mark of a bully,” he said.
Minister for Heritage Malcolm Noonan said: “I’m committed to working with the turf cutters and finding a way forward together. Collaboration is the only way to deliver real progress for our peatlands. I’d appeal to the turf cutters that are working with the National Parks & Wildlife Service at the moment to stick at it and keep engaging with us”
Fianna Fáil TD Barry Cowen, who is a Euro Election candidate and based in the Midlands, rejected the view that Ireland was paying the price for decades of inaction.
Mr Cowen said on RTÉ Radio 1′s News at One that outside of designated areas those with turbary rights or leases were entitled to extract turf on sites of under 30 acres for their personal needs and those of neighbours. “It’s a practice that will die a natural death over time, and I won’t be party to outlawing it,” he added.
The new EU nature restoration law means restoration and rewetting of boglands will continue on State-owned lands belonging to Bord na Móna, Coillte and the OPW, with farmers being allowed to opt in, he added.
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