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Farmers who need to carry out hedge-cutting on their land must be granted an extension, independent TD Michael Fitzmaurice has said.
Fitzmaurice said heavy rainfall in recent weeks meant machinery could not travel on land without causing significant damage.
“The fact of the matter is that land is totally waterlogged at the moment. Significant and relentless rainfall in recent weeks has meant you couldn’t dream of travelling on land with a tractor, particularly in the west of Ireland.
“Anyone who planned to carry out some hedge-cutting in 2020 hasn't been afforded the opportunity due to the inclement weather and poor ground conditions.”
The deadline for hedge-cutting is the end of February. Fitzmaurice said an extension of a month was required and called for the issue to be addressed immediately as it was essential work on most farms.
“Some leniency has to be shown when weather conditions completely prevent this work from being done in the weeks leading up to a deadline,” he concluded.
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