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The prohibition on people selling turf harvested from their own plots will lead to hardship for a significant number of rural families, an Opposition TD has said.
New regulations will come into effect next September that will allow people to cut turf for their own domestic use on family-owned plots but will effectively prohibit them from selling turf extracted from those sites.
The new rules were disclosed by Minister for Climate Action Eamon Ryan to Kerry TD Brendan Griffin in a parliamentary reply.
He said there would be no ban on peat harvested from traditional plots for domestic use, but a new ban on sale would come into effect from next autumn.
“Turf cutting by citizens for use in their own homes is a traditional activity across many peatlands, and while measures are required to reduce the emissions associated with burning peat, these traditions will be respected,” said Mr Ryan.
“Therefore, in order to accommodate those with rights to harvest sod peat, no ban on its cutting or burning will be introduced. But a regulatory provision will be made to prohibit the placing on the market, sale or distribution of sod peat. This approach will facilitate those with turbary rights to continue to cut and burn sod peat for their own domestic purposes, while also reducing the use of sod peat in urban areas.
“As such, persons who have turbary rights will continue to be permitted to extract peat to heat their own dwelling, but will not be permitted to place it on the market for sale or distribution to others,” he said.
Mr Ryan said the new regulations would be introduced from September 1st this year. He argued that the new measures were required to reduce air pollution in the State.
“Each year, some 1,300 people die prematurely in Ireland due to air pollution from solid fuel burning. It is estimated that there are over 16,200 life years lost, while many people also experience a poor quality of life due to the associated short-term and long-term health impacts of this form of pollution.
“The National Peatlands Strategy acknowledges the tradition of burning peat in Ireland, but also recognises that the associated emissions to the air contain a range of pollutants. Research undertaken by the Environmental Protection Agency also demonstrates that the contribution of peat to air pollution levels is significant,” he said.
It is thought that the move to ban the sale of turf will also make it easier to impose stringent restrictions on smokey coal throughout the State.
Small-scale sale
The Independent TD for Roscommon-Galway Michael Fitzmaurice said on Monday that the “sudden”? announcement would be unjust and unfair on families who rely on small-scale sale of turf to tide themselves over during the winter.
Families who cut turf on their own bog might cut four hoppers, or two trailer loads extra and sell it at the cost of whatever the contractor charged to cut it.
“That bit of extra turf will cover the cost of cutting and make their turf free for the year. They also cut it for elderly neighbours who don’t have a plot and sell it to them at cost price.
Mr Fitzmaurice said the nature of the announcement was like Mr Ryan bringing “a big bad hammer bang down on everything”.
He said everybody recognised that restrictions will be needed but said that it could have been done more gradually.
“What he should have done is set out a transition between now and 2030, when people will be in a position to benefit from offshore wind power, heat pumps and better insulated home. For people on low incomes to do it now will cause hardship as there are no alternatives at the moment from renewable energy or retrofitting,” he said.
He said the transition would take a decade to complete and people should be given some degree of flexibility during that time.