Turf cutters set to take case to European Commissioner

TURF cutters are set to bypass the Government and take their case to the European Commissioner for the Environment in a bid to find a solution to a problem which could cost the state €20,000 a day in fines if it is not resolved.

In what has become a bitter row over protected boglands, the Turf Cutters and Contractors Association (TCCA) is preparing a report for Commissioner Janez Potocnik, and intends to bypass Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht Jimmy Deenihan, and bring their proposal straight to Europe.

According to TCCA spokesman, Luke Ming Flanagan, a very small number of turf cutters need an exemption from EU laws which state they cannot cut on raised bogs, which have been preserved as an area of special heritage. Offers made by the Government for recompense include relocating to another bog or an offer of free turf for three or four years.