Leitrim group calls for tighter forest regulations as power outages continue

Environmental group Save Leitrim have called for greater regulations on forestry planters as many residents in South Leitrim remain without power a week after storm Darragh ravaged Ireland.

Like Storm Ophelie in 2017, Storm Darragh caused extensive damage to the country's electric infrastructure leaving over 400,000 people without power with areas in Leitrim being some of the last to have power restored in the country.

“This is not new, this has been happening before, there are individual houses, and homes, and small areas that have been out of power after storms for a number of years,” says Brian Smyth of Save Leitrim, an environmental group that is opposed to current forestry practices in the county.

Trees and branches from forests that have grown too close to power lines that run along the roads, or over land, that are blown down during storms can knock out electricity to surrounding areas.

“There's a problem there are houses that are out for four, five, six days and repeatedly out over recent years that means there is a problem with trees close to the power lines and somebody needs to take responsibility,” says Smyth.

In a statement Collite, a semi-government owned forestry company, who and is responsible for managing over 14,000 acres of forestry in Leitrim said that it is not them but “The power companies” that are responsible for cutting trees that endanger power line.

Coillte have said that they have followed regulations in keeping trees at a safe distance from powerlines and the surrounding forests are “generally far enough back from powerlines so as not to pose a direct risk.”

When asked by the Leitrim Observer, given the damage forestry has caused to power lines in this storm, if they would cut future back in future they did not reply.

Save Leitrim has criticised Coillte for its forest activity in the county stating on X, formerly Twitter, that power outages are related to forest management in the county. 

“If you watch Coillte ads on TV produced by PR firms they are very fussy and warm and they are great but these Coillte trees are leaving people cold in their houses for a week,” said Smyth.

Around 20% of Leitrim was covered in forestry in 2023, according to a Forestry Statistics Ireland report, though that is higher with new forestry licences having been granted in the county this year.

Smyth has called on the Department of Agriculture and Forestry services to put updated and tighter restrictions on how close forestry can be to power lines, stating they should be at least 50 metres away, and he has said that local communities should be involved in the process of granting licences.

“No forest licence regulation takes account of a social and community impact, if you go to get a licence none of that is assessed and what we are saying is that the system is problematic,” he says.

“Storms causing problems for small numbers of individual families and farms will continue unless somebody does something and that means that the forest service, the department of agriculture, forest owners, Coillte, ESB, and local community representatives must be present to solve the problem”

READ MORE: Clarity sought on refugee accommodation in Leitrim hotels