Reckless farmers and fly-tippers in the line of fire

FOLLOWING large-scale destruction of the countryside by fires, last year, action is being taken to prevent a recurrence before the annual gorse- burning gets underway.

Under the Wildlife Act, it is illegal to start gorse fires between March 31 and August 31. Many of the fires are set in April, the month when most damage was done last year. Usually lit in mountain scrubland, they resulted in huge loss of wildlife, vegetation and forestry and came close to engulfing dwelling houses.

Some scenic mountain areas were scarred and blackened for the remainder of the year. The State-owned woodland company, Coillte, had to pay €3.5m last year to clean up 254 blazes on its lands in the worst year for forest fires in decades.