A semi-provincial agriculturist’s endeavour to incinerate gorse on his upland farmstead ignited a fire that obliterated 16 hectares of vegetation, a court was informed. This action demanded hours of emergency services’ contributions to restrain the uncontained fire. Maurice Bowler, 44 years old, resident of The Quadrants, Ballincollig, County Cork, conceded his lapse in judgement during the hearing at Cork District Court on Wednesday. He admitted to setting gorse ablaze on his inherited family farm at Reacaslagh, Kells, Co Kerry, on 3rd March 2023.
Under the Wildlife Acts, it’s illegal to “clear, destroy or burn” any natural vegetation in untamed land between 1st March and 31st August. This rule is structured to safeguard bird species during their breeding phase, and if violated, the infraction could lead to a maximum penalty of €5,000.
Jean Hamilton, a prosecution witness and a conservational warden with the National Parks and Wildlife Service noted that she observed the hillside vegetation in flames while en route to Cahersiveen on the N70 on the afternoon of the same day. Upon reaching the scene, she saw Mr Bowler combating the flames—that were ever-expanding—with a spade.
When she asked him whether he initiated the fire, he accepted responsibility, arguing that he was attempting to clear the area so he could graze sheep over the area. His understanding was that the restriction for burning gorse commenced from March 21st and not earlier.
She contacted the emergency team as she spotted the fire expanding at a dangerous pace. Firefighters from the Kerry County unit tried to curb its growth. But when she returned to the location, the blaze had crossed beyond the boundary of Mr Bowler’s property, setting the shared land ablaze too.
Defence attorney Killian McCarthy stated that his client, who now stays and operates in Cork, obtained the land from his family in 2016. He maintains some sheep on the farmstead and lit the fire intending to clear the land of gorse so that his flock of approximately 60 sheep could graze.
Mr McCarthy expressed that the defendant was not an expert in the legalities surrounding land burning. He wrongly assumed he had the right to do so during specific seasons. Regrettably, his actions were carried out three days too soon on the 3rd of March 2023. The accused regretted appearing in court and pledged not to repeat this mistake.
On the other hand, Judge John King agreed to consider this as a sincere error, given the closeness to the lawful burning date. But, he stressed that it remained a severe issue that could have potentially had dire outcomes.
It was noted that the accused, Mr Bowler, had a clean slate with no prior lawful violations of any sort. Therefore, the Judge decided to postpone the case until the 7th of October. This suspension was conditional on Mr. Bowler’s payment of €600 to the Court Poor Box. Once accomplished, the charge would be dropped under the clause 111 of the Probation of Offenders Act, the judge stated.