Farmers urge action as floods engulf land

ACTION to alleviate flooding across thousands of acres in the Shannon Basin was sought yesterday by the Irish Farmers Association as conditions on saturated farm land worsened.

Rains storms, which particularly lashed the midlands and west in recent weeks, have left thousands of acres under water and disrupted farm work.

IFA president Padraig Walshe, who visited the region yesterday, as further heavy rain and high winds were forecast, said there is an urgent need for a Shannon flood relief scheme.

Speaking following a visit to the flooded farmland of Fintan Nally, near Athlone, he said the recurring problems must be tackled in a co-ordinated way.

Particular emphasis must be placed on forcing the ESB to lower water levels in Lough Derg, he said.

Mr Walshe said dredging needs to be done in the parts of the river that have been silted. Weirs and channels must be cleaned and river margins banked in certain areas.

The flooding was causing real problems for many farmers. Cattle sheds have nearly two feet of water in them and some farmers have to move stock.

Winter fodder is also under threat because of the flood waters.

“Farmers are finding it very difficult to manage stock in these conditions. High water on local roads is adding to the difficulties and leading to economic and humanitarian problems,” he said.

Mr Walshe said he would be pressing the Minister of State at the Office of Public Works Tom Parlon to bring forward a relief scheme as soon as possible.

Fine Gael agriculture spokesperson Denis Naughten, TD, said nothing practical has been done to address the issue of flooding in the Shannon Basin.

“Homes are threatened with flooding, communities are isolated but not one cent of funding has been provided to carry out maintenance on the River Shannon or to raise roads to maintain access to those homes,” he said.

“An elderly man suffered a heart attack some years ago. The only way he could be brought to the hospital was on two bales of straw tied to a buckrake on the back of a tractor.

“It is unacceptable in an economy such as this that any human being should have to be transferred in such a manner,” he told the Dáil.