The mechanical extraction of turf from bogs need to stop - Tóibín

Any wholesale cutting of turf on one of Meath’s greatest and most important ecosystems – its bogs – must be stopped at all costs, a county councillor has said.

The issue of the mechanical extrusion of peat and turf was raised at a council meeting by Cllr Emer Tóibín, Aontú, who said that the destruction of the bogs, a great natural resource, should not be permitted and all the resources of the council, individual councillors and the wider community should be used in the fight against their destruction.

The councillor had tabled a notice of motion calling on the council for action on a particular issue relating to the excavation of pet and turf on a Meath bog. She said there was an onus on her as a councillor to bring whatever information she received from a constituent to the attention of the relevant department within the council if she felt it had a bearing on the issue and if it is corroborated by an individual organisation.

She said that any excavation of the type she described was regarded by An Bord Pleanala as a development and required an environmental Impact Assessment.

She said that she had been advised by an expert in the field, who had dedicated significant time and resources to this issue “in his drive to protect what is considered to be one of the most important ecosystems in the world much of which only remains in our own country”. She said the person she referred to had been a diligent professional and an enduring defender of climate change activism.

Cllr Tóibín said she had a personal interest in the area of environmental protection and she knew that Meath County Council also had the same interest.

She said that there was a danger that turbary rights holders or family plot holders could face sanction down the line in the event of a ruling banning all development on the bog resulting from the activities of any one individual developer.

Council officials said that the council investigated all complaints received with regard to enforcement of planning laws and regulations.