Give the lawn mower a break this summer – Biodiversity Officer

DIVERSITY RICH  A wildflower patch at Fr Angelus Park, Westport.

Anton McNulty

Manicured and pristinely kept lawns will have to become a thing of the past if the native Irish bee population is to survive and continue to pollinate, according to the Westport Tidy Towns Biodiversity Officer.
Pat Fahy from Kilmeena was recently named a Local Biodiversity Champion in the Irish Wildlife Trust Biodiversity Awards for his work on behalf of Westport Tidy Towns and for promoting pollination and propagation projects in the town.
As a biodiversity officer, he has been instrumental in changing the way the Westport Tidy Towns committee and local volunteers look at wild flowers and wildlife around the town.
“There is actually more points in the Tidy Towns competition for wildlife habitats and biodiversity than there is for litter picking,” he told The Mayo News.

Deserts and dandelions
One of the projects Pat is looking to promote is the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan, which aims to bring numerous stakeholders – such as farmers, local authorities, gardeners and schools – together to create an environment where pollinators like bumblebees can thrive.
“The big problem is there are not enough flowers, and they [the bees] are dying of starvation. There are species on the brink of extinction in this country, and that is the big problem. I’m trying to promote action by getting flowers into the grass that are good for the pollinators, and things like that.”
Pat is seen as a the ‘go-to man’ for all things biodiversity in Westport, and last year almost 15 acres of green areas in Westport were let grow rather than being mowed. He describes manicured and pristinely kept lawns as ‘green deserts’, because they offer little for wildlife to live on, and he urges the public not to be too eager to get the lawn out.
“At this time of the year, the bumblebee coming out of hibernation is starving and it’s relying on the dandelion for that little bit of nectar to keep it going until the other flowers come out to bloom.
“People should adopt what is called the six-week mowing regime. Pick a patch of ground where they have a lot of wild flowers like dandelions, and delay the first cut until April. Then cut the grass at a high setting and then don’t cut for another six weeks. Even a small patch will help the wild flowers … this is the best and easiest action anyone can do,” he said.

Tree felling
One of the bees in danger in Ireland is the Great Yellow Bumblebee, and Erris is home to one of the largest populations of this bee. Belmullet Tidy Towns recently won a biodiversity award for its project on the bee, and Pat said they and other community groups in Mayo need to be congratulated for their efforts in promoting biodiversity.
“People are doing whatever they can do, and it is great to get the response. There’s a lot more interest in [biodiversity] in the last few years, which is brilliant. One time with Tidy Towns, if you saw a patch of dandelions I’d be told to weed them out. People are gone from hating the dandelions to appreciating what they are doing. I was pleasantly surprised how people have turned around and are now taking an interest in something that used to be absolutely hated. It is mighty.”
While he says this is a step in the right direction he says the recent felling of trees in the county for road projects is a step in the wrong direction.
“In years to come, people will look back and think that what we have done is just crazy. It is not progress. To restore what we have lost is going to take so much work. It could be lost forever,” he lamented.

Petition
Pat is asking the public to get behind a petition to get the Government to provide adequate funding for the National Biodiversity Data Centre.  
Submissions to the Heritage Ireland 2030 Consultation Document close on March 31, and Pat is asking people to send a short email to heritageireland2030@chg.gov.ie asking for funding for the data centre to help protect our the natural heritage into the future.