Farming - Thurles Information

Taoiseach Supports Lowry Request Re. Payments For Beef Farmers

Following a call from Tipperary Independent TD Michael Lowry to bring forward direct payments to beef farmers in light of the current crisis; An Taoiseach Mr Leo Varadkar says that the Deputy’s request ‘makes sense’.

Deputy Lowry informed the weekly Dail sitting that concerns about the beef sector are mounting and cash flow remains a serious concern for farmers during the Covid-19 crisis.

Deputy Lowry suggested to An Taoiseach that EU direct payments, which are due to be made in October, should be brought forward to July to help alleviate at least some of that financial pressure.

“Prices have slumped. Cash-flow is now a major issue for beef farmers both in Tipperary and around the country. Could your Government commit to bringing forward direct payments to beef farmers from October to July this year?” asked Deputy Lowry.

In response, An Taoiseach stated, “They are EU funds. The farmers would be getting them anyway so it might make sense to bring it forward. It’s not money they wouldn’t be getting anyway, but it might at least help with cash-flow.”

Lowry Highlights Need For Funding For Farm Safety Schemes

Tipperary Independent TD Mr Michael Lowry pictured here with Mrs Imelda Walsh *(Chairperson North Tipperary IFA)* and Mr Michael Kennedy *(Vice Chairperson North Tipperary IFA)*

There are many issues facing farmers at this time. The need to minimise the impact of CAP Reform; the fight to get fair pricing for farm produce; calls to stop the exporting of live animals and farmers being asked to set aside land for forestry; just a few of the problems that farmers have raised consistently throughout this Election Campaign.

Deputy Lowry has consistently worked for a better deal for farmers and promoted a greater understanding of the challenges being faced by rural Ireland.

The vital issue of ‘Farm Safety’ is one that has not received sufficient attention in the media throughout the Campaign, but is one that Deputy Lowry is determined to make a priority if re-elected. He is fully supportive of the IFA’s call to have a Farm Safety Scheme introduced, under the Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS) with increased funding for health and safety equipment.

Farm safety should be a priority on every farm, just as it is in every other business. A typical family farming situation now involves part-time farming with the day-time herding attended to by a senior farmer, left to handle large suckler-bred cattle. There have been over 207 deaths in Agriculture and Forestry over the last 10 years, (2009-2018) and in just 2019 alone a further 18 persons can be added to this earlier total.

One of the greatest risks to farmers is the often very solitary nature of their work. Regardless of age, farmers for the most part work alone and are often isolated from other people. There are multiple dangers ranging from using unprotected Power Take-Off (PTO) shafts; slurry agitation in enclosed or poorly ventilated areas; livestock handling; loose clothing becoming caught in farm machines, and attempts made to correct problems with farm machinery and equipment without the proper tools and training to avoid delaying necessary work.

Some of the farm safety measures proposed under the Farm Safety Scheme are installing yard lighting, cattle and sheep handling facilities (mobile and fixed), replacing hinged (swinging) doors with sliding or roller doors, retro-fitting of safety rails on silo walls and re-wiring existing farm buildings.

Deputy Lowry says that while the major issues raised during the Election Campaign are of huge importance to the future of farming in Tipperary and throughout Ireland, action must be taken to ensure that famers are safe in their place of work. “A properly funded Farm Safety Scheme is a matter of urgency”, says Deputy Lowry.

Moyne “Lisheen Lands” Portfolio Goes On Sale.

Investors and those wishing to acquire certain residential dwellings are expected to show interest in the sale of a large land holding of some 800 acres, latter located in the area of Moyne, Thurles, Co. Tipperary.

This portfolio known as “Lisheen Lands” comprises a mix of industrial and agricultural land, and comes with the benefit of not only significant income through renewable energy, but also agricultural enterprises including outbuildings and residential dwellings.

The Lisheen Mine near Moyne ceased its operations back in 2015 and the property has since been returned to a brownfield industrial site.

The entire portfolio is now being placed on the market initially in one single lot by Dublin estate agents Knight Frank, at a guide price of an expected €11 million Euros.

These lands are officially designated as the National Bioeconomy Campus where renewable biological resources from land and sea are being used to produce energy, food and materials.

Here the area has been awarded “Modern Demonstrator Region” status by the European Commission, making it one of only six such regions within the EU to be granted this status.

Danger: Water Abstractions Bill Affecting Tipperary Brought To Cabinet

**Part of Tipperary’s Lough Derg shore line.**

The present Fine Gael Cabinet has approved new legislation that should allow for the development of a controversial aqua pipeline that hopes to extract water from the River Shannon to feed Dublin’s continuously leaking water pipes.

Minister supposedly in charge of Housing, Planning and Local Government, Mr Eoghan Murphy yesterday, Tuesday December 17th, conveyed a memo to Cabinet, proposing the drafting of a Water Environment (Abstractions) Bill. This Bill would allow for the licensing of large-scale water abstractions, within the Irish State.

However, the real aim of this Bill is to allow by law for a massive, controversial €1.3 billion Shannon pipeline to proceed. Backed by Irish Water, this project, proposes to use water from the River Shannon to supply water to Dublin.

First mooted in 2011, the scheme was estimated at €470m. In 2014, three years later, estimates for cost were €500m. The project today, just a five years later; and reminiscent of the National Children’s Hospital Project, same is now estimated at costing taxpayers €1.3 billion and rising; all for the benefit of Urban Dublin.

The project has been already fiercely opposed by Tipperary landowners, latter the owners of property along the proposed route. Same argue that its impact will be detrimental to the Lower Shannon region. They further argue that the 40% to 50% of leaking pipes first introduced under British rule in Victorian times within the Dublin region, if repaired, would fully negate any need to abstract water supplies from Ireland’s 224-mile-long river, named after ‘Sionna’, a Celtic goddess.

For readers unaware of this aqua pipeline project; same proposes to extract some 330 to 350 million litres of water from the Shannon river, piped through a 170km pipeline, from Lough Derg’s Parteen Basin in Co. Tipperary, across Ireland to Dublin city, overseen by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), latter who recently declared that there are now just 20 pristine river sites within the Republic of Ireland; same down from over 500 such sites in the late 1980’s.

Tipperary’s Tim Cullinan Elected 16th President Of IFA

Mr Tim Cullinan, a pig farmer from Toomevara, Nenagh, Co. Tipperary, has been elected the 16th President of the Irish Farmer’s Association (IFA) yesterday evening, Tuesday December 17th, at Castleknock Hotel, in Dublin, after initially an extremely close fought race.

Mr Cullinan eventually ended up winning comfortably, from Cork dairy & beef farmer, Mr John Coughlan, following the transfer of votes from Mr Angus Woods, latter who was the first casualty of the close-knit election.

Turnout for the voting, over the last number of weeks, was 22,998 or 32.4% of the Association’s 72,000 members.

Mr Cullinan lead on first preference votes of 932, following the first count of 22,998 votes. Mr Woods was only 253 votes behind Cork dairy and beef farmer Mr John Coughlan, when voting in the first round concluded, prior to the count of transfers.

A huge turnout in his home county of Tipperary, insured Mr Cullinan’s final comfortable win.

Long acknowledged as a driver for reform within the IFA association; securing improved beef prices will be Mr Cullinan’s number-one priority, during his tenure as new president-elect.