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THE IRISH WILDLIFE Trust (IWT) has criticised Heather Humphreys for her response to gorse fires.
The Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht gave an interview on the subject on Radio Kerry earlier. Kerry is one of several counties that have experienced the fires of late.
In fact, it has been one of the worst affected areas. There has been a 700% increase in the number of gorse fires in the county in the first quarter of 2015, compared to the same period last year.
In an interview on Kerry Today with Jerry O’Sullivan, Humphreys said the increase in the number of fires was “very disturbing”. She said thousands of euro worth of damage was caused by the fires lit in March and April. They also threatened homes and damaged a section of the Killarney National Park.
Humphreys said she expects prosecutions “if we can identify who the culprits are”.
When O’Sullivan said farmers lit some of the fires because they are being financially penalised for not dealing with gorse on their lands, the minister said she didn’t want to prejudice garda investigations into the matter by speculating as to who was to blame.
Change in law
Given the 700% increase in the number of gorse fires in Kerry, O’Sullivan said current legislation isn’t working. However, Humphreys said she didn’t agree.
Her department is currently looking into changing section 40 of the Wildlife Act, which makes it an offence to burn gorse between 1 March to 31 August.
Over 180 submissions have been sent to the department on the issue, with farmers looking for the start date to be changed back to 15 April. Humphreys said she is trying to strike “the right balance in protecting the environment while allowing the farmers to farm the land”.
She encouraged people to be mindful of the damage fires can cause and said anyone found guilty of lighting an illegal fire will face the prospect of a fine and/or jail time.
National Parks
During the interview, Humphreys maintained the fires which took place in the area were not an issue for her staff except where they occurred in Killarney National Park.
The Irish Wildlife Trust (IWT) said the minister “appeared clueless and unaware of her responsibilities”.
“She seemed totally unaware that fires also occurred in Wicklow National Park while many of the upland areas that have been scorched in recent weeks are within Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas. These are our most important biodiversity areas and are managed by the National Parks and Wildlife Service, an agency within the minister’s department.”
IWT Campaigns Officer Pádraic Fogarty said Humphreys ”seems blissfully unaware of her duties to protect areas of European importance for wildlife”.
Extensive and devastating fires have raged through the country in the past few weeks, destroying all before their path, and Heather Humphreys seems clueless in her lack of response.
“The IWT believes that wild fires will only come under control when the Department of Agriculture stops single farm payments to those responsible. Upland habitats are being degraded at an alarming rate and it is disheartening to see those in authority shrugging their shoulders or looking the other way,” Fogarty stated.
Humphrey’s department did not respond to a request for comment.
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I hope the UK get boris it is what they deserve. It will be the people of the UK that suffer the most and these are the leaders they elected.
@john s: A divisive buffoon in Washington and a divisive buffoon in London. Seems like character and ethics have been removed from the prerequisite list on the job application.
English teams won the Europa and Champions leagues with a lot of help from some Belgians.
Boris won’t be able to kick the bucket or can down the road because he will be busy trying to take both feet out of his mouth.
@KJmadra.: does not matter who wins the Conservative poison chalice, when the UK leaves the EU it’s all downhill for them from there unfortunately with a huge knock on effect in Ireland with the border with the potential to take us back to the old days there. Not good all around really.
The electorate deserves everything they vote for and Boris and Trump are the most dangerous combination ever to be in power at the same time
Boris is a way more intelligent and machiavellian that he portrays. He plays the buffon character as it works with the conservative electorate while underneath it he is a sharp mined schemer.
The most dangerous thing about Boris is all he is interested in is Boris , he is only on the Brexit platform because its suited him politically, he originally wrote a pro remain article in the telegraph in 2016 where he said continued membership of the EU would be a “boon for the world and for Europe”. A week later he changed his mind and published a hard brexit column. I think if he become PM he wont be able to back up the statements he has made and will end up doing Theresa Mays deal with the EU and will quickly to from the golden haired boy to a hate figure the the entrenched hard brexit ideologues
Hes not going to gave a good relationship with Europe if he reneged on the 30 billion or so that Britain owes, which he has said he will do
IMO the Conservatives will buckle by September and opt for a second referendum
@Moorooka Mick: it’s the only escape from disaster
I really hope Boris wins too. F@@k it sure it’ll be gas!
@andyearley: Irish people – They have a strong view on other countries politicians and policies but ZERO on their own half hazard politicians
@Whoswho: not quite true, my view on Varadcar and his cowboy government would not pass the obscenity filter here.
That slogan is ripe for a Substitute S instead of B on the first line.
Sack
Boris
this would be the germany wihich hasn’t slipped behind India and France on GDP yet.
@ed w: or the Germany that experienced 1.5% growth in 2018 and has projected growth of only 0.5% for 2019 and is teetering on the brink of recession.
They deserve him…… unfortunately the rest of us don’t.
Politicians will say anything, do anything to get a promotion and can end up doing anything in power… People get what they vote for?
Maybe an English team won the Europa League, but a Scouse one won the Champions League. Now do one Johnson, we’re Scouse not English and don’t be using us to big yourself and the country up when you couldn’t care less about us.
Oh I hope that they get the Eton class clown for a leader, Dobbo handed him his ass at the convention center earlier this year, the UK will really rue what they wished for with this clown at the helm!!
Borris the soundbite king. Suppose he has to dumb things down for his supporters.
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