Farmers are moving slurry from tank to tank as storage gets precariously close to full capacity.Bad weather in the back end of the year forced many farmers to house cattle earlier than expected.
Farmers are moving slurry from tank to tank as storage gets precariously close to full capacity.
Bad weather in the back end of the year forced many farmers to house cattle earlier than expected.
This also meant there were fewer opportunities to spread slurry that was already in tanks as fields were too wet. Contractors and farmers around the country have reported that space is becoming a problem, with many moving slurry to other tanks in a bid to create extra space.
The situation does not look likely to improve any time soon, with a Met Éireann spokesperson telling the Irish Farmers Journal that fields nationwide have reached maximum saturation.
Figures from the Department of Agriculture show that last year almost 600 farmers applied to spread slurry after the closed period, a 630% increase on 2016 levels. Some 283 farmers availed of this flexibility to spread slurry after the closing date.
Enda Sweeney, a contractor in Ballinasloe, Co Galway, told the Irish Farmers Journal things are getting tight on farms. “We’re moving slurry from one tank to another, just trucking it around. I bought a new pipe system there and I don’t think I’ll get into a field for at least three weeks.”
Clare IFA chair Willie Hanrahan said the situation is “chronic” in his county.
The issue is not just confined to the west of Ireland, with farmers in Meath and Tipperary also reporting a lack of storage.
Meath farmer Shane Corbally said the slurry tower on his farm is full. “We have more storage available so we’ll be alright. This tower was put in in 2009 and it’s never been this full.”
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