Doolough Lake
The Doolough Protection Group is an environmental group based in west Clare, Ireland. It was formed in early 2002 by twenty volunteers residing in the area. The area of focus to the Group is the southern part of the Slieve Callan/Mount Callan uplands, between the villages of Lissycasey, Kilmaley, Mullagh and Kilmihil. It is also referred to as the "South Doolough Area."
The South Doolough Area is isolated, relatively undisturbed and is a refuge for wildlife. Under high pressure from conifer afforestation, the last remnants of a large system of boglands, lakes and streams are vital for our biodiversity, landscapes and environment. Doolough Lake is the largest lake in the County and the source of drinking water for most of west Clare. The shorelines of the minor lakes such as Lough Nacrag, Lough Namina and Lough Acrow support intact habitats and important species. Habitats listed in Annex I of the EU Habitats Directive present throughout the South Doolough Area include active blanket bog, wet heath and dry heath, while birds listed in Annex I of the EU Birds Directive include Hen Harriers, Whooper Swans, Merlins and Golden Plovers.
Doolough Lake is the reservoir that supplies drinking water for the whole of West Clare, and as such is covered by a number of water protection designations. As a hilly terrain of outstanding natural beauty harboring the last remaining intact blanket bogs in west Clare, it is covered by a number of visual designations.
The biggest threats to the South Doolough Area's environment and community is identified as commercial afforestation, poor land management practices, rural "one-off housing" and the recent rush toward wind energy development. Recently, there have been a number of proposed wind-farm applications, as well as the continued afforestation in areas classified as environmentally sensitive.
The Doolough Protection Group have concentrated on the opposition of these developments. There has been a sense of urgency, due to the high periodicity of new developments related to the planning process for wind energy projects, and the known environmental and social impacts of non-native conifer afforestation and industrial wind production in an environmentally sensitive area such as South Doolough.
Forestry in the South Doolough Area
Forestry is a dominant agricultural activity locally, along with beef production. Forestry tends to supplant traditional agriculture to a larger extent every year with farmers retiring or putting part or all of their land under afforestation. The principal species planted is Sitka spruce, giving an overall dark, monotonous and degraded aspect of the area, with plantations marred by the straight lines of forestry drains.
Coillte Harvesting Site (Doolough, Connolly, Co. Clare - April 2003)
A rough visual survey of the South Doolough Area shows that Sitka spruce is still widely planted in monoculture, except for a narrow band of broadleaves or mixed species (1 to 3 rows) on the roadside margins. In the rare "diverse" parcels established recently, Larch and Lodgepole Pine (both non-native conifers) are used in conjunction with Sitka spruce. Virtually no substantial area is planted with broadleaf species, though such species as Ash, Alder and Sycamore do appear to grow quite well, as evidenced by the apparently higher growth rate of broadleaves in the margins, at least during the first decade post-plantation.
At the annual Burren Law School in 2004 at the Burren College of Art in Ballyvaughan, Co. Clare, Conor Skehan of the Dublin Institute of Technology gave his prognostic on future changes in land-use in the countryside. He said: "very extensive areas will cease to be farmed: the more productive lowland soils will be used for forestry and the rest will naturally return to woodland cover." [The changing countryside, The Clare Champion 7 May 2004.] Actually the reverse is true in the South Doolough area: the less productive upland areas are destroyed by conifer plantations while the more productive lowland soils remain in agriculture.
In this area, as active blanket bogs continue to be planted. Planting peat sites is counter-productive, as blanket bogs constitute large stores of carbon, which actively pump atmospheric carbon on a yearly basis and are now thought to be more efficient in this role than temperate forests. Drainage and mounding, which is the sole practice used locally, results in huge losses of carbon from the ecosystem through soil erosion at the initial stages, while deep drains contribute to the drying of peat which can then be oxidised and release its carbon to the atmosphere. Even the local Forest Service admits to the carbon balance in favour of afforestation of bogs being neutral, which is probably a euphemism.
The sustainable development agency of the area, the Ibrickane Network, recognises that bogland is the preferred target of foresters, but minimises the extent of this phenomenon by limiting it to "cut-away bogs". They write: "Today…much of the cut-away bog has been replanted as Sitka spruce forestry. Though not a labour intensive activity, it does bring substantial revenue to the area in the form of afforestation grants." [Sustainable Development in Ibrickane - Building for the Future. Strategic Plan 2003-2006 prepared for the Ibrickane Network]. There are numerous examples throughout the area where new parcels of intact blanket bog are being planted every year. The only bogs appearing to be protected from being planted are those regularly used for peat extraction for domestic fires. These are areas with good quality peat, good access for machinery and suitable lay-out for peat drying.
It is difficult to pinpoint what is the role of Coillte in the ongoing degradation of the South Doolough Area by forestry, but it is assured that in the few cases where the ownership of the parcel is known, very little differences can be observed between the practices of Coillte and private operators, and in particular very little regard seems to be afforded locally to the fact that land is blanket bog or another priority habitat under the EU Habitats Directive, such as Wet Heath, Dry Heath, or wet grasslands.
In 2004, prior to the submission to the Soil Association made by the the Doolough Protection Group, the group aimed to compute the total fraction of the South Doolough Area under afforestation, the fraction of species used, the fraction of blanket bog and other priority habitat planted, the amount under control by Coillte versus private landowners, and a break-down by period (with a particular interest in the post-FSC certification period for Coillte). The Forest Service Inspector in Ennis, County Clare, was contacted to try to obtain more precise statistics on the extent and character of the land under afforestation in this area (percentage per townland, for instance). Even though it had been promised on a previous occasion that such statistics would be provided, it has this far been refused.
Thus, concerning the extent of recent Coillte operations in the area; It is a fact that in recent years, particularly post-Coillte certification, little new land has come to the ownership of Coillte as private foresters are buying up any land that comes on the market. In each locality, a couple of big agri-businessmen, based locally or not, can afford to invest in buying marginal land which has nevertheless become relatively expensive. These names are also incidentally becoming involved in wind farming (see below). It is also known, however, that the smaller farmers who do not wish to turn into foresters but wish to retain ownership of the land can rent their land to Coillte as long-term leases. In these cases it is believe that the land may not appear in records as being planted by Coillte and may not be subject to as much scrutiny. Bogland has been planted post-certification under this scheme, though this fact is disputed by the local Forest Service Inspector who claims that Farm Partnership schemes do not concern marginal land.
Considering that huge amounts of blanket bog continue to be lost through afforestation in this area, and that Coillte most likely continues to play a role in this, such conservation projects restoring a few hectares are little more than a Public Relations exercise and an additional waste of EU funds. In County Clare only 16.2 acres of bog are to be restored in Pollagoona bog in east Clare according to the brochure on the project. Incidentally it is significant that such environmental projects take place in east Clare where public environmental awareness is much higher than in west Clare.
Harvesting/replanting site at Doolough Lake
In this section a case study a recent Coillte harvesting/replanting site is\detailed, located south of Doolough Lake.
This site is located in a zone theoretically afforded the highest protection on both water protection and visual protection grounds. A number of water protection designations govern it (River Catchment Zone, Water Protection Zone, County Ground Water Protection scheme, and Source Protection Plan for Doolough Lake). The immediate shorelines of Doolough Lake are classified as visually vulnerable in the Clare County Development Plan 1999 and remain as such in the draft County Development Plan 2004. The site is classified as sensitive by the Forest Service.
The Doolough Protection Group approached the Forest Service Inspector in Ennis, when harvesting was near completion. It was proposed to use this as the site of a formal report on a harvesting site, which unfortunately did not happen as the site was mounded by the time of his inspection. He however visited this group following his inspection and took time to listen to their concerns, which he confirmed to a large extent. These grievances were numerous:
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improper use of brash mats resulting in excessive area compacted by machine tracks.
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harvesting of all trees except for a narrow band of broadleaves at the roadside margin (see picture). This included scenic mature spruce trees along the forestry road entrance. Damage of some of the broadleaf trees at the margin by machines.
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damage to the road by harvesting trucks leading to huge pot-holes subsequently filled by County Council workers.
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considerable amount of branch debris left on site.
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considerable amount of soil disturbance and debris buried, which could lead to water pollution following organic matter decomposition.
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very deep new drains opened in the direction of the slope rather than at right degree angle to minimise erosion and water flow.
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drains leading to a small roadside ditch and eventually directly to Doolough Lake, as the owner of the land opposite the road opened a new drain at the time of the operations, presumably to remove the excess water from his land.
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repeat incidents of flooding of the public road during heavy rain events in the spring.
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etc.
Detail of drain, new forestry plantation on intact blanket bog (Doolough, Connolly, Co.Clare, April 2004).
It was suggested to the Forest Service Inspector (by the Doolough Protection Group) that, considering the environmental sensitivity of the site and the environmental and visual damage already done, some compensatory measures be applied subsequently. He dismissed outright the possibility of leaving the site unplanted or restoring it. He however offered to ask Coillte to discuss the species to be used, as part of the public consultation process (none of the neighbouring residents had been consulted at any stage of the harvesting). He entertained the group's hopes that the site be converted to a broadleaf plantation. These hopes were however dashed when the Coillte operator did arrive to finally consult with us. By the time he visited the group, the tree bags had already been delivered to the site and the species were only 20% diverse, which was the original species mix planned.
This example is indicative of a particular site which had a high potential to be used as a model site of good environmental practice and community relations, but this opportunity was largely lost and the site left instead as a model of the dismal practices of forestry operators in west Clare.
A month later, the adjoining site to the east, a large expanse of intact blanket bog also quasi-adjacent to Doolough Lake, was in turn converted to afforestation. It is significant that here again, proper site practices were not followed. Following a new complaint to the Forest Service Inspector, a visit was made to the site. While the Inspector upheld the rights of the operator to plant the blanket bog site, he did note that contrary to the conditions, the operators had dug the site right up to the roadside margin. The operators were subsequently asked to re-instate the roadside margins, which was done but could clearly not result in restoring the integrity of the ecosystem.
It is disheartening to see that no efforts are being done to follow good practices unless a member of the community or a voluntary environmental group objects. Even so, there are very little returns on such effort, and these concern only a tiny fraction of the forestry operations in the south Doolough area. To render the task even more difficult personal and deepening hostility is evident from the people associated with forestry locally.
Young forestry on blanket bog (Cahermurphy, Kilmihil, Co.Clare, April 2004)
Synergy of Wind Industry With Conifer Afforestation
The South Doolough Area is one among a number of localities in the west of Ireland heavily targeted by wind energy developers, due to the marginal nature of the land, and the relative isolation from population centers. In this small area in west County Clare there are five wind energy projects granted planning permission:
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Booltiagh, Kilmaley (planning permission in 2000), in construction as of July 2005
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Letteragh/Boolynagleragh, Lissycasey (2003)
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Frure/High Street, Lissycasey (2004)
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Glenmore, Kilmihil (2004)
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Cahermurphy, Kilmihil
All other wind projects in the county are currently distributed in the wider west Clare area.
A number of new projects and extensions of existing projects are notably in preparation locally. The Doolough area is now zoned as one of a number of "preferred area for wind farms" in County Clare, despite in particular the presence of protected habitats and bird species such as the Hen Harrier [Clare County Development Plan 2005-2011]. Three areas which have been recently designated as Natural Heritage Areas (NHAs) by the National Parks and Wildlife Service due to the presence of good quality blanket bog are however excluded from the Doolough windfarm zone. These are:
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NHA 2400: Cragnashingaun Bogs
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NHA 2367: Lough Naminna Bogs
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NHA 2421: Lough Acrow Bogs.
In the context of lobbying the EU for grant aid for afforestation, the degradation of landscapes by quasi-monocultures of Sitka spruce, historically largely attributable to Coillte, are routinely minimised. It is thus scandalous that this level of degradation can be now used as a justification for more visual degradation through the imposition of huge wind turbines on the landscape - and more grant aid. An Bord Pleanala's Inspector's report for the High Street, Lissycasey development for instance states that the proposed turbines "will significantly alter the nature of the landscape, but …the landscape itself is much altered, most notably by large-scale coniferous plantation." [Planning permission granted March 2004 by An Bord Pleanala, ref. PL03.204911].
Thus there is a situation where marginal uplands are first degraded by conifer afforestation, and subsequently come under increased pressure from the wind industry. A more disturbing issue is the apparent facilitation by Coillte of such projects.
Young forestry on heath (The Hand, Miltown Malbay, May 2004)
In Derrybrien Co. Galway, following the October 2003 landslide, issues about possible illegal clearfelling of Coillte conifer plantation prior to construction of the the wind farm are arising in the case currently being investigated by the EU. In the South Doolough Area, it is a strange coincidence that a large forest fire took place in sites of proposed and granted windfarm projects. The fires in April 2003 burnt 300 acres of forestry in this area: at Locknamina, Glenmore and Doolough
What is clear is that construction of the first windfarm of the South Doolough Area area has commenced in the Booltiagh site, a site which was affected by the fire. The site, which was visited on 30 May 2004 by the Doolough Protection Group, has not been replanted yet, though an adjacent site subject of a planned proposal for eastern extension of the Booltiagh windfarm (signposted Midwestern Forestry) has been replanted. On a site visit it is odd to notice that a band of young trees bordering the road was untouched by the fire while the land bordering it where construction is taking place was burnt.
Whether or not the windfarm operators (DP Energy) have their situation in order regarding clearfelling licenses and forestry premiums is not known at this stage. It is however already obvious at this stage that the fire facilitates the construction operations. Some facts are emerging from the planning file for the Booltiagh wind farm [Windfarm at Booltiagh, Planning ref P00/567, Clare County Council].
The planning conditions on file dated 26 February 2004 for instance mentions the convenient screening by intact plantation: "…Additional screening will result from the band of existing forestry plantation which lies between the substation and the third class public road…this area of the forestry is one of the few areas which survived the recent fire intact intact ." (p.2)
While screening was left intact, the turbine sites themselves, which would have been in a growing plantation, were burnt! The same document reads: "… with the exception of the turbines in turbary plots on the west of the site all turbines are located either in young forestry / disturbed ground or in burned forest and no virgin bog will be disturbed for the turbine footprint." (p.4). Other documents on file point to the confusion regarding the responsibility for replanting.
Burnt forestry in Booltiagh windfarm site (Booltiagh, Kilmaley, Co. Clare, May 2004)
In conclusion, the Doolough Protection Society and the Woodland League strongly oppose the renewal of Coillte's FSC certification, based on our knowledge of forestry practices and the environmental and social impact in the area of the southern Slieve Callan uplands in west Clare. Non-native conifer forestry is slowly but surely destroying the South Doolough Area area and there does not appear to be any significant difference between Coillte and private operators. There are a number of cases where a full investigation is needed as to the role of Coillte in facilitating a number of industrial developments throughout the country, notably wind power stations. None of this constitues sustainable forestry, and the sustainable certification awarded to Coillte can only contribute to further degradation of our area.
- Doolough Protection Group
