Irish Wildlife Trust Critisise Government On Current Sustainable Farming Policies

The Irish Wildlife Trust says the government needs to overhaul its policies around sustainable farming and stop hiding behind existing rules, which it says are outdated and not joined up.

A number of gorse and land fires have taken place in Wicklow in recent weeks, which the county’s chief fire officer says are being started deliberately.

The Wildlife Trust has rejected claims by farming organisations that most of the incidents are caused by backpackers and tourists,  and says in most cases, farmers are setting illegal fires to clear lands for sheep grazing.

Speaking to  East Coast FM’s Morning Show, Padraic Fogarty from the Irish Wildlife Trust said laws surrounding burning farmland hedging and gorse are failing miserably.