Turf Cutting
Seanad Éireann — 2026-05-13
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PJ Murphy (FG), Agricultural Panel

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy O'Donnell, for coming in to hear this Commencement matter this morning. I am here yet again to speak about something I have spoken about a number of times previously in this House, which is the cessation of the turf-cutting compensation scheme. In particular, I wish to speak about the situation involving the 80 families in my own area of south-east Galway, who have traditionally cut turf on three bogs, namely Barroughter, Ardgraigue and Clonmoylan, who entered into an agreement with the National Parks and Wildlife Service, NPWS, back in 2011 through this cessation of turf-cutting compensation scheme.
At the time, what these 80 families signed up for was an annual index-linked payment, beginning with €1,500 a year. It was to be an annual payment that was to be in place for up to 15 years or until the NPWS would be in a position to relocate the families to an alternative turf bank, as the bogs they were working on had been deemed special areas of conservation, SACs. Fifteen years later, we have arrived in 2026. These payments have come to an end and the NPWS has not successfully relocated any of the 80 families in question. These families are now in a situation where their turf banks are on SAC raised bogs. Their compensation stream has come to an end and they find themselves with nowhere to legally cut turf. Speaking in this Chamber on 16 December last, I flagged that this was going to come to a head this spring or in the early summer. I called on the Minister to intervene with three potential options: give a derogation to allow these families to return to cut turf on their original family-held turf banks; continue the compensation package; or, as a matter of urgency, in advance of this year's turf-cutting season, to find alternative turf banks for these 80 families. Regrettably, none of the above has happened. Not only that, there has been no communication between the NPWS and these families in the meantime.
The situation we are in now for these families in south-east Galway is that they have empty turf sheds. Fuel prices, as the Minister of State knows, are at an all-time high and the turf-cutting season began last week. Now is the time to have the machines in the bog cutting the turf. Should these 80 families maybe do something that is legally questionable and return to their historic family turf banks, which are now in an SAC area, and cut their turf? Will the NPWS and the Department write to these families to let them know they intend to extend the compensation package for this year and into the future until they are in a position to honour the agreement they made by providing alternative turf banks?

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Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:56+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-05-13