The periods for hedge-cutting and burning of hill vegetation are to be extended by one month on a trial basis to make land management more practical. The change was announced this week by Minister Heather Humphreys.

Under the two-year pilot measure, hedge-cutting can start one month earlier in 2016, on 1 August. As before, hedge-cutting will stop at the end of February in advance of bird nesting. The season for burning of hill scrub is extended to include March, again starting in 2016.

However, the minister warned that hedge-cutting in August would only be possible under strict conditions. Likewise, burning of vegetation in March can only be carried out where this is specified by the minister. This might arise, for example, where adverse weather conditions prevent necessary controlled burning being carried out earlier.

The legislation required to allow for these pilot measures will be included in the Heritage Bill 2015.

Listen to news correspondent Paul Mooney's explanation of the new measures in our podcast below:

Easing of the deadlines comes after years of lobbying by farm organisations, which claim the current deadlines were not practical. Being unable to burn hill vegetation led to land becoming unsuitable for grazing, farmers have warned.

In 2014, Minister Humphreys announced a review of the Wildlife Acts and invited submissions. This week she said: “Following detailed consideration of the submissions made to the Section 40 review, I have decided to implement these two measures on a pilot basis.

“These two measures are designed to introduce a limited amount of flexibility to help with land management, which is of particular concern to rural dwellers. I want to ensure that a fair and balanced system is in place, while ensuring the protection of biodiversity.”

Minister Humphreys said that the levels of hedge-cutting and burning carried out in the extended periods would be monitored, along with their impact. Only then would any decision be made on continuing the measures beyond the pilot phase.

Welcomed

Yesterday, IFA hills chairman Pat Dunne welcomed the extension for burning, saying the current deadline had led to land abandonment in hill areas. “The extension will reduce the risk of wild fires, allow better vegetation management and keep land eligible for EU payment schemes.”

ICSA president Paddy Kent also welcomed the decision. “This is a commonsense response to what is a real issue for farmers, particularly on hill and mountain ground. The flexibility on hedge-cutting is also welcomed.”