A number of large peat extraction operations around the country are being investigated for possible illegal activities by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Photos by the environmental agency gained from drones were provided to the Right to Know organisation under an Access to Information on the Environment request.

Right to Know received 62 reports in total from all around the country, however not from 62 different locations, as inspectors revisited particular areas.

The counties included in the report were as follows: Offaly; Westmeath; Roscommon; Kildare; Longford; Tipperary; Sligo; Cavan; and Tipperary.

Some of the photos by the EPA, provided to Right to Know can be seen below:

Photos from sites in Co. Kildare; Longford; Offaly; Roscommon; and Westmeath

The acts are continuing despite the ban on commercial peat harvesting, which came into effect by the High Court in 2019, and the ban on the commercial sale of peat for solid fuel heating and the restriction of peat-cutting for other purposes.

Legislation now states that a person shall not carry on peat extraction other than in accordance with a licence or revised licence.

Peat extraction

One of the reports stated that peat harvesting and peat extraction machinery and equipment was noted to be parked at the peatland.

Some of the machinery being used included excavators, tractors, drainage machinery, large sod peat and milled peat extraction and harvesting machinery/equipment.

Another report noted a “commercial scale” operation with peat processing and bagging plant is located near the site.

The EPA spoke with people present at that particular site, and were told that the occupiers had ceased extracting peat on some sections of the peatland in 2022.

Ashley Glover from Right to Know said that it was “not a surprise” for many that the operations were happening, but that the scale of the operations may not have been known.

“You can see from the photos, the building and machines involved, that it is an expensive operation, so there is obviously a lot of money involved,” Glover said.

Glover said that with the amount of draining operations in place, that the Local Authority Waters Programme (LAWPRO) or county councils “should step in”.

“They give out about farmers, and at the same time there are huge operations draining bogs, with all the sediments going straight into the nearest river,” he said.

He added that “enforcement is not difficult” and that keys from machinery being used could be taken in order to put people off working for the large operation.

Glover said that the question now is “”what happens after the inspections” and how the EPA is planning to respond.