A study by engineering and environmental consultants Malachy Walsh and Partners has found that practices by the agriculture and forestry sectors are the main reasons for the decline in the River Feale’s water quality. The river rises in North Cork and flows west for 75 kilometres through Abbeyfeale and Listowel before entering the sea near Ballybunion. The report was given to Radio Kerry by Brendan Danaher, PRO of the Mountcollins and Brosna Anglers’ Association. Treasa Murphy discusses the main findings with Jerry.Following on from this podcast:
STATEMENT FROM IRISH FORESTRY UNIT TRUST:Cypermethrin is currently an approved pesticide, approved for use in forestry by the Pesticide Registration and Control Divisions (PRCD) of the Department of Agriculture, Food & the Marine(DAFM). It is DAFM which decides legally what can be used. Both Coillte and Irish Forestry Unit Trust (IForUT) are FSC certified companies. The derogation is got to do with that voluntary certification scheme and the derogation expired in 2021. We did not renew it as we had found an alternative chemical. We were actively reducing our use of this chemical during 2020. In fact, we had not used it whatsoever in 2020 in either Kerry or Limerick, and we did not use cypermethrin in the area during the study period. We haven’t used it at all in 2021 or 2022.
NOTES REGARDING CYPERMETHRIN: The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine is the competent authority in Ireland with responsibility for the authorisation of plant protection products (PPPs).
Active substances such as cypermethrin, contained in PPPs are approved centrally at EU level. PPPs are subsequently authorised or not nationally by the competent authority. A list of currently registered PPPs can be found at Plant Protection Products register. None of the cypermethrin containing PPPs currently registered are approved for use in forestry in Ireland. A previously authorised product, Forester (PCS 02533) was removed from our register with effect from 1 February 2022, following publication of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/2049.
