Following the publication of a ‘statement of intent’ from Bord na Móna (BNM) last week, one farm organisation has said it “falls short of what is required”.
BNM issued the statement in an effort to alleviate concerns over its bog rehabilitation and rewetting plans.
It has been feared by farm organisations and local politicians that the rewetting process may inadvertently lead to the flooding of adjacent farmland.
Reacting to BMM’s statement, the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers’ Association (ICMSA) acknowledged the distance BNM went in making the statement.
ICMSA president Pat McCormack said yesterday (Wednesday, April 28), that he had no objection to the project itself and that he didn’t doubt BNM’s good faith.
However, he commented: “We note that the statement still falls short of that categorical commitment that ICMSA set out from the beginning as the basic requirement for the project to get ‘buy-in’ from neighbouring farmers.
“We have always said that a written guarantee will be required from BNM to make good any damage to private lands resulting from the rewetting,” McCormack insisted.
“What degree of legal obligation is placed upon Bord na Móna by this statement of intent?”
The ICMSA president argued that the BNM statement “does not hit that degree of legal certainty that the neighbouring farmers are perfectly entitled to expect.”
He suggested it was a “contradiction” for BNM to not give these legal guarantees if they were confident in the rewetting process.
“Stressing its good intentions and engineering expertise is beside the point; no-one doubts those… If BNM is confident about its expertise in this area and are so committed to ongoing supervision of the project, then it should be willing to put its name to an agreement,” McCormack argued.
He concluded: “When that happens, we will be glad to acknowledge it and help in any way that respects the rights of farmers.”