Forest companies 'shrink' from their repsonsibilities, says Leitirm councillor

Leitrim county councillor Paddy O’Rourke has called for forestry companies in Leitrim to take greater responsibility for the condition that they leave public property in after their works.

The comments were made on OceanFm earlier this week after reports of routes locally being left impassable due to trees.

"You would have to witness the mess that some of these forestry companies leave after themselves,” said the councillor.

He stressed that not all forestry companies were at fault and some were better than others at engaging with the county council, making them aware before works take place. However, there needed to be more responsibility taken.

“Some companies are much better than others at making good on the damage that has been caused, and what I am really asking for is that these companies be put on notice that they have certain responsibilities and that a failure to live up to these responsibilities will lead to repercussions.”

“The citizens that live on these roads and who traverse them for their daily lives deserve much better than this,” he said.

The forestry situation in Leitrim has been a point of concern for a number of years, with over 20% of the land in the county being used for forestry according to the 2023 Forestry Statistics Ireland report.

A number of community groups and events, headed by groups like Save Leitrim, were organised in the county following the damage caused by falling trees during storms Darragh and Eowyn in recent years.

 Calls have come for funds to be made available by companies for the county council to repair damage when it is caused by the work. 

“We need to make it so that no one can shrink form their responsibilities,” says O’Rourke.