Some farmers are willing to donate feed to those who want to transfer their livestock from Dursey Island onto the mainland as repairs to the cable car are delayed further.
This is according to the Cork west chair of the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) Donal O’Donovan, who told Agriland that one farmer has been provided accommodation for his livestock.
Eight farmers currently have a total of 100 cattle and 500 sheep on Dursey Island, a few of which are awaiting confirmation for shelter on the mainland, he said.
Due to difficult sea conditions impacting the ferry service in place, farmers are finding it very difficult to access the island, with some travelling by boat themselves, O’Donovan said.
“One of the farmers I was speaking to just before Christmas has only been out on December 9, to see his cattle in the whole month of December.
“There are one or two cows that will be calving from mid-January on and farmers need to be able to see their animals. This is where the difficulty lies at the moment,” he said.
However, Cork County Council confirmed that repairs to the cable car infrastructure are ongoing, and it is “anticipated” the service will resume in April 2023.
Dursey Island
The IFA is appealing to farmers on the mainland who have empty sheds to make them available and give housing to those who want to get their livestock off the island.
A plan has been put in place by the IFA, with farmers willing to donate bales of silage and arrange transport to where they are needed on the mainland.
However, O’Donovan said this is provided that farmers can get accommodation on the mainland, and arrangements would have to be made to get a cargo ferry to transfer the animals.
He said if there is only two farmers involved with about 20 animals, around 150 bales will last from now until April. “Logistically, I think we would be able to organise that,” the IFA chair added.
There was a very strong response from farmers to provide forage for the animals once accommodation was sourced on the mainland at the recently held west Cork IFA annual general meeting (AGM), O’Donovan told Agriland.
“Farmers understand the difficulties faced by those with livestock on the island and had no hesitation in stepping up the help,” he said.
Cable-car service
Following a severe weather incident in late 2021, the council identified that urgent, essential remediation work to the support towers were necessary to ensure the continued safe operation of the cable car.
“Once the cable car infrastructure was dismantled the track ropes for the mechanism were subject to a magnetic resonance test, which indicated internal damage to the cable.
“As it was not possible to source new cables from suppliers the steel cable must be fabricated to the required specifications. An order has been placed for this component and is due to be delivered and installed in March 2023.
“The cable car service is regulated by the Commission for Railways Regulation and will require a statutory inspection and approval before the service can recommence,” Cork County Council said.