THE Cork Wildfire Co-operative Group met in Macroom recently with reps of the Forest Service, IFA, An Garda Siochana, Community Alert, Teagasc, Cork County Council and Coillte in attendance.
THE Cork Wildfire Co-operative Group met in Macroom recently with reps of the Forest Service, IFA, An Garda Siochana, Community Alert, Teagasc, Cork County Council and Coillte in attendance.
The objective of the group who meet several times a year is to promote safe burning practices amongst landowners during the burning season that runs between September and February.
It also encourages landowners to contact Fire Control in advance of any burning of vegetation by ringing 999/112 and asking for Fire Control.
‘Prescribed burning can be defined as the controlled application of fire to a predetermined area, at a specified time of day and season, and under specified weather and fuel conditions, so as to ensure that the intensity, rate of spread and extent of spread of the fire, meet planned land management and treatment objectives, and comply with legal, environmental and social constraints,’ said Crime Prevention Officer Ian O’Callaghan.
The Prescribed Burning Code of Practice can be downloaded on the Department of Agriculture’s website.
As part of promoting safe burning, the group has organised training exercises for the benefit of landowners, following one in Kealkil earlier this year.
It is envisaged to hold several more of these around the county.
