Ireland imported almost 20,000 tons of peat in 2023, at a time when the Irish government was telling rural communities not to cut turf and the EU is threatening to sue the country for those who did.
That’s according to Aontú’s Mary T Sweeney, who is contesting the local elections in Letterkenny, and who says the current system is “farcical” to figures from the Central Statistics Office indicate.
She says that “Figures released to Aontú show that 172,000 tonnes of peat have been imported into the country since 2016, with nearly 20,000 tonnes imported last year alone”.
“The irony of our Irish Government telling us not to cut turf, and imposing harsh taxation on us, while the European Commission is taking Ireland to court over alleged failure to protect the bogs, and at the same time we have 170,000 tonnes of peat being imported into the country to satisfy demand here,” she said.
“It’s as if they’re condemning the small farmer who owns a plot of land in Letterkenny or Ballyboyey for instance, but are happy to support the person has an acre of bog abroad in Eastern Europe for example”.
“This lies bare the Government’s hypocrisy and lack of common sense once again. Penalising small Irish landowner who is just trying to heat his or her home, it’s madness”.
“The coalition Government is allowing the junior partner run amok. The Greens are not called ‘Green’ for nothing; they have no handle on the issue at all,” she said.
“On one hand they are increasing carbon tax and other punitive measures which are truly hurting farmers and rural communities and on the other they are importing peat. Imagine the air miles and carbon footprint this is running up”.
“It is absolutely bonkers and just the kind of thing that drives people in rural areas round the bend as it makes no sense whatsoever”.
“I have grown up using turf. All my neighbours, friends and family use it. It is our way of life. I’m desperately concerned that if the Green party is successful in stopping people using Irish turf, it’s the most vulnerable, the old and the poor who will suffer most as always, as turf is their sole source of heat”.
“I am urging all candidates in Donegal as a whole to reveal their stance on the issue of turf cutting before putting their name on the ballot paper in a few weeks’ time “.
“The Government’s attempts at window dressing on the issue really come unstuck with the release of these figures and once again show its astounding hypocrisy, ineptitude and obsession with optics over common sense,” she said.
In March of this year, the European Commission announced it would take Ireland to court on turf-cutting activities and site restoration, despite a complete state withdrawal from peat harvesting, because they say Irish turf sites “continue to be degraded through drainage and turf cutting activities”.
The Commission also argued that “insufficient action” is being taken to restore sites where cutting has ceased.
Independent TD described the case as “nonsense” and urged the Irish government to “stand up for turf cutters.”
Tipperary TD, Mattie McGrath, said at the time that “the government have rushed to closed down the peat stations ahead of time to please the EU, so this is a nonsense – almost as much of a nonsense as the fact that we are now importing turf from Latvia instead, while our own people who worked in Bord na Móna have lost jobs and their future without any real plans to help them from the government.”
Independent TD Carol Nolan had previously described the news of 200 truckloads of peat being imported from Latvia after the government called a halt to peat harvesting as showing how “clueless” government policy is.