The open period for hedge-cutting will begin on Monday (September 1) and remains open until February 28, 2026.

Contractors are busy preparing for the season ahead, which has been closed since March of this year. One element which they encounter every year is fallen telephone wires.

Storm Éowyn which happened earlier this year has now created the added difficulty of wires which may still be left lying over hedges and ditches.

Agriland spoke to hedge-cutting contractor, Michael Connolly who outlined the problems telephone wires can cause each year.

He said: “A big issue for us is when the wires are repaired, the old wire is rolled up and left beside the pole and then we come along and catch them in the hedge-cutter. It’s hard for us because you’d never see it.

“This then can cause a lot of damage to the bearings in the hedge-cutter, which can put you back a good while and getting it out is a big job.”

Storm damage

TDs and senators have also been expressing their concerns about possible remaining storm damage as the season begins.

Independent TD for Roscommon-Galway, Michael Fitzmaurice said: “It is imperative over the next two weeks that anywhere where lines are down, and there are telephone lines down in remote areas.

“With the hedge-cutting season starting we don’t want wires tangled up in hedge-cutting machinery, leaving it impossible to trim back the hedges on the sides of roads.

“So it’s crucial that the remedial work is done to get this sorted, so that hedges that are taking mirrors off lorries and cars can be cut once the season opens on September first.”

Fine Gael Senator, Gareth Scahill outlined that a “two-pronged approach” needs to be taken. He said: “Verges are in desperate need of cutting for road safety at the moment.

“The local authorities have a big body of work ahead of them in the coming months to address a lot of the overgrowth that occurred during the closed period.

“But we still have legacy issues there from Storm Éowyn, we still have low-lying wires and delicately placed power wires and phonelines.

“This needs to be tackled from a national level to provide some guidance, and getting the utility companies to outline their plan moving forward.”

Maintenance

In a statement to Agriland, National Broadband Ireland (NBI) said it will be conducting its own tree trimming programme from September 1 as part of its ongoing build and connections programme.

The broadband provider will be managing any remedial cable work on its network through contractors.

It said: “To ensure service interruptions were mitigated, several temporary infrastructure fixes are in place pending new pole installation from third party network operators or NBI contractors.

“Where any tree-trimming contractor encounters an NBI cable in a hedgerow or tree which they plan to trim, NBI requests that they do not proceed and allow us 72 hours notice to respond and attend site, by contacting the following number (0818) 624 624 or email contactus@nbi.ie.”

Storm damage

Maintenance

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Telephone wires

Wires may be crossed as hedge-cutting season begins