Penalty for cleaning open drains

kay 9

As above folks, fella asked me to clean open land drains but has since postponed on it due to some farmers receiving penalties for doing so. Didn't know this was possible until today and have recently done my own. Anyone shed some light on this? Thanks

kay 9

Anyone?

Figerty

never heard of it. SAC?

I did recall something in the green cert about not opening/cleaning all drains in the same year to protect eco systems.

viztopia

The opw are doing drains in our area this week.

kay 9

Figerty wrote: »

never heard of it. SAC?

I did recall something in the green cert about not opening/cleaning all drains in the same year to protect eco systems.

Never heard of it either mate. New to me. Don't know about it being sac tbh. Maybe it's Smth to do with time of year.

tanko

Have farmers actually received penalties for doing this or is it just pub talk?

mf240

Dont think theres any truth in that op.

kay 9

I wish it was pub talk folks but I don't drink much anymore and a reps planner told me a fella in south Mayo lost 20% of his sfp for it. Wanted to know if anyone has any first hand experience of this as I do bits of machine work for ppl but never came across this before. Thanks all:)

AP2014

kay 9 wrote: »

I wish it was pub talk folks but I don't drink much anymore and a reps planner told me a fella in south Mayo lost 20% of his sfp for it. Wanted to know if anyone has any first hand experience of this as I do bits of machine work for ppl but never came across this before. Thanks all:)

There are penalties for it in Glas if you have entered the area as low input perm pasture....not sure how lads would have got penalties for this though as scheme hasn't started yet

ganmo

kay 9 wrote: »

I wish it was pub talk folks but I don't drink much anymore and a reps planner told me a fella in south Mayo lost 20% of his sfp for it. Wanted to know if anyone has any first hand experience of this as I do bits of machine work for ppl but never came across this before. Thanks all:)

Could it be he drained too much land, without getting the go ahead from the dept. Can't remember what they called it but ya couldn't drain large areas or level lots of ground without getting the go ahead from the dept

longgonesilver

If you sprayed it first or damaged a lot of bushes/habitat then you would break some of the regulations.

I think drains are supposed to be cleared in the summer as this causes least damage to fish eggs.?

kay 9

Thanks all. Going to try find out more on this from the horses mouth and if and when I do I'll report back here. Not nice getting penalised for improving land.

Reggie.

viztopia wrote: »

The opw are doing drains in our area this week.

Same as that. Bloody cattle broke out yesterday after them aswell.

Zoo4m8

Off topic but Reggie reminds me, had a couple eejits from the EPA a while ago looking for evidence of salmon in my stream, wouldn't hold minnows never mind salmon, but anyway, the pair took ten minutes dressing in the yard as if they were going on an expedition to Everest..
I showed them where to go and where not to go, where gates were etc and left them to it.
A couple days later came out one morning to find all the sheep in a fine crop of Barley, turned out this pair couldn't be arsed walking thirty yards to a gate and had CUT their way through a hedge..could have driven a jeep through it, presume they didn't want their nice designer outdoor gear scratched..
The only way these clowns will ever get back on this patch is with a Garda escort :mad:

Genghis Cant

I don't know if some of the Ag schemes preclude you from instream works, but under fisheries legislation you could certainly run foul of the law for working instream in stream capable of holding Salmonid stock (Trout or Salmon). The close season is usually Oct 1st to Mar 1st. Instream works are usually not carried out till May to allow juvenile fish fry move off the gravels and become more robust.
Other species may also further complicate this eg Lamprey. ( who spawn in the summer and have the same annex 1 protection as Salmonids).
I'd advise you to talk to your local Fisheries Officer before you attempt any digging unless you're sure of your grounds.

greysides

Thanks GC, I was hoping you'd spot this thread.

Cran

Farmers cleaned river here couple of years ago with council approval. First day get phone call at work saying the fisheries board turned up and shut operation down due to crayfish, got load of phone calls from lads saying sfp was in trouble etc etc. In end think they were reasonable enough they wanted enough manpower on banks to keep crayfish thrown back in the river, they kept an close eye on it for the week (which in fairness is their job). Guy who works on the farm spent week throwing crayfish into the river, said at the end of the week 'never want to see another f88888 crayfish as long as I live'

blue5000

Zoo4m8 wrote: »

Off topic but Reggie reminds me, had a couple eejits from the EPA a while ago looking for evidence of salmon in my stream, wouldn't hold minnows never mind salmon, but anyway, the pair took ten minutes dressing in the yard as if they were going on an expedition to Everest..
I showed them where to go and where not to go, where gates were etc and left them to it.
A couple days later came out one morning to find all the sheep in a fine crop of Barley, turned out this pair couldn't be arsed walking thirty yards to a gate and had CUT their way through a hedge..could have driven a jeep through it, presume they didn't want their nice designer outdoor gear scratched..
The only way these clowns will ever get back on this patch is with a Garda escort :mad:

You should write in a letter of complaint with the date and location. Once a letter goes in it causes a ****load of paperwork to explode in any public sector office.

ganmo

blue5000 wrote: »

You should write in a letter of complaint with the date and location. Once a letter goes in it causes a ****load of paperwork to explode in any public sector office.

request the names of the individuals for the garda investigation of the criminal damage...watch them sweat

Reggie.

blue5000 wrote: »

You should write in a letter of complaint with the date and location. Once a letter goes in it causes a ****load of paperwork to explode in any public sector office.

I can confirm that

kay 9

Thanks for the replies again. Definitely no fish in these drains anyway. They're at the foothills of a mountain. I've a feeling fish of some sort were involved in the man with the 20% penalty. He's beside the sea in loiusburg Co. Mayo

Genghis Cant

kay 9 wrote: »

Thanks for the replies again. Definitely no fish in these drains anyway.

Just on this point. There doesn't need to be fish present. The waters simply need to be capable of holding salmonids.
The likes of Brook Lamprey can be very difficult to detect, to the casual observer.
I'm speaking in general terms. Many areas have their own peculiarities, but again be sure before you proceed!

Reggie.

Genghis Cant wrote: »

Just on this point. There doesn't need to be fish present. The waters simply need to be capable of holding salmonids.
The likes of Brook Lamprey can be very difficult to detect, to the casual observer.
I'm speaking in general terms. Many areas have their own peculiarities, but again be sure before you proceed!

Also I believe they do be concerned about silt and the likes flowing further down the stream/river that may have the fish present