GOLDEN PLOVER nesting sites, grouse and rare heather species on Roundstone bog are among the plant and wildlife affected by one of the worst spates of bog and forest fires in the west “in years”, according to the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS).
Part of the Connemara National Park was damaged in a series of fires over the past weekend, which also spread over special areas of conservation (SAC) before being extinguished by Clifden fire brigade and NPWS and Coillte staff.
Coillte estimates the fires over the past three weeks have cost the forestry company €2.5 million, with more than 520 hectares affected in Connemara and parts of Sligo, Roscommon, Mayo and Clare.
Both the parks service and Coillte say they have “no evidence” that protest action may have led to the blazes, while gardaí say they are “not investigating reports of arson” in Connemara.
Restrictions on mountain grazing are unpopular in some areas, as is the ban on turf-cutting on some raised bogs in the west.
Green Party Senator Niall Ó Brolcháín said he believed some fires were deliberate.
“The shape of some of the fires suggests they were deliberately set, but I have no idea of the motive.”
Coillte has appealed to owners of stock not to burn heather to clear ground for animals. A Coillte spokesman said it was illegal to burn vegetation between March 1st and August 31st under the Wildlife Act.
Dr Noel Kirby, regional manager of the National Parks and Wildlife Service in Connemara, paid tribute to the Clifden fire brigade, which had been involved in some 120 call-outs this year.
“At one stage we were very worried about the Diamond Hill walk near Letterfrack, but thankfully the fire service, along with our own staff, contained it.”
He said grouse would have been seriously affected if fire had spread to Diamond Hill. However, nesting sites for many birds were “wiped out”, along with dry sedge and purple moorgrass on bogland and Dorset heath, a type of heather only found in the Roundstone bog.
“Sheep and lambs have been burnt and the run-off of charcoal into rivers and streams will affect fisheries. Ash does fertilise to a certain extent, but the ecosystem can only put up with a certain amount.”
Coillte district manager for Mayo and Connemara Tony Clarke said more than 50 hectares of forestry were burnt last weekend alone in Connemara and Mayo.
Helicopters have been hired to help extinguish the blaze, exacerbated by prolonged dry spells.