Mayo hill farmers alarmed at proposals for 'buffer zones' on commonage

Mayo Sinn Féin TD, Rose Conway-Walsh has called on the Government to cease plans to apply buffer zones around areas where turf cutting is permitted in commonage areas because of the impact this will have on ACRES payments.

The Erris-based TD said that the Government proposals to include a buffer area of 100 metres around these areas on commonages would have a very significant negative impact on farmers in Mayo and across the western seaboard.

“Many farmers in the west will be relying on commonage and mountain lands. The issue is the scoring of mountain land, where active turf-cutting means all farmers on that commonage will lose marks, even if the turf cutter with the turbary rights is not one of those farmers.

“Last May, when I raised the issue of how active turf cutting in commonage areas could impact ACRES payments I was assured that the issue would be resolved by separating out the turf cutting area and allowing the overall area and scoring separately. While far from perfect it was a compromise that at least gave us a pathway forward.

“Now to see the Government try and implement buffer zones through the backdoor is extremely concerning. This was not communicated to farmers and opposition TDs at the time. This is disingenuous by the Government and certainly is no way to encourage farmers who do everything possible to protect the environment and mitigate climate change.

“Farmers have been hit from all directions. This is yet another blow that, if implemented, could seriously damage the viability of many farms, particularly in the west as well as alienating farm families. I urge the minister to stop and think,” she said.

The Irish Natura & Hill Farmers Association (INHFA) also expressed alarm around these proposals with its Vice President John Joe Fitzgerald stating that if they are applied they 'will have a major impact on the overall habitat score of these commonages that will see reduced ACRES payments to farmers'.

Mr Fitzgerald said that in discussions with department staff last year there was an understanding reached that allowed for the areas where turf was being cut, to be separated from the overall area and scored separately.

“Through these and subsequent discussions, there was no reference to buffer zones and neither do they feature as part of the terms and conditions of the scheme. So while the solution [scoring these areas separately] wasn’t ideal, it did protect the wider area of commonages where turf cutting was still ongoing.

“At a time when farmers were expecting payments to issue, it is unacceptable that farmers could take a major financial hit over factors that are in most instances outside their control.

“Many people that are cutting turf on commonages may not even be farmers, but as they have a legal turbary right there is nothing any farmer on that commonage can do to stop them.”

With regard to the turbary plots he said that they are often spread across the commonage so when a buffer zone of 100m is applied 'there is a real danger that substantial parts of these commonages will get a negative habitat score which will undermine the overall habitat score and payment rates'.

In concluding Fitzgerald detailed how the INHFA have written to the Minister and his staff on this and are currently awaiting a meeting.