Large-scale illegal peat extraction operations have been uncovered across 38 sites in seven Irish counties, contributing to an unauthorized export trade worth almost €40 million annually, according to a damning new report from the Environmental Protection Agency.
The EPA investigation revealed that commercial peat harvesting operations are being conducted without proper authorization from local authorities across Offaly, Kildare, Tipperary, Westmeath, Roscommon, Longford, and Sligo, representing what officials describe as “flagrant violation of environmental law.”
The illegal operations are exporting approximately 300,000 tonnes of peat each year, causing what the EPA characterizes as “catastrophic” environmental damage to vital ecosystems and carbon storage areas crucial for Ireland’s climate action efforts.
Between 2021 and 2024, the EPA allocated significant resources to combat the illegal trade, conducting 170 enforcement inspections across the affected sites. The agency has pursued legal action in both District and High Courts against operations exceeding 50 hectares, resulting in the shutdown of several illegal peat extraction sites.
However, numerous court cases remain ongoing, highlighting the scale and persistence of the unauthorized operations that have flourished in the absence of proper regulatory oversight.
The EPA’s enforcement efforts have focused on the largest operations, where environmental damage is most severe and the commercial scale of illegal extraction is most evident.
The report emphasizes that local authorities bear primary responsibility for regulating commercial peat extraction within their jurisdictions. This includes ensuring compliance with environmental legislation, conducting Environmental Impact Assessments, performing Appropriate Assessments for protected habitats, and granting or refusing necessary planning permissions.
The EPA is now directing local authorities to take immediate enforcement action against illegal operations in their areas, suggesting that regulatory gaps may have allowed the unauthorized trade to flourish.
The revelation raises questions about the effectiveness of current regulatory structures and whether local authorities have sufficient resources and expertise to monitor and control commercial peat extraction activities.
Dr Tom Ryan, Director of the EPA Office of Environmental Enforcement, delivered a stark assessment of the environmental impact caused by unauthorized peat harvesting.
“Operators engaged in unauthorised peat harvesting activities are in flagrant violation of environmental law. They are destroying our precious natural environments and this needs to stop,” Dr Ryan stated.
He emphasized the comprehensive nature of the environmental damage: “The environmental damage caused by large-scale peat extraction operating outside regulatory control is catastrophic for the environment. It results in the destruction of vital ecosystems for biodiversity, the loss of important carbon sinks for our efforts on climate change and the decimation of an irreplaceable cultural and scientific amenity and resource.”
The report draws a sharp contrast between illegal operations and properly regulated peat extraction. Bord na Móna lawfully operated nine peatland complexes across 11 counties under EPA licence until operations ceased in 2020, demonstrating that peat harvesting can be conducted within environmental regulations.
Following the end of licensed operations, Bord na Móna is now rehabilitating those peatlands with support from the Peatlands Climate Action Scheme. By the end of 2024, nearly 19,000 hectares will have been restored, “bringing the land back to life and allowing nature to thrive again.”
This restoration work illustrates both the possibility of environmental recovery and the long-term damage being caused by current illegal operations that lack any rehabilitation requirements or environmental safeguards.
The illegal peat extraction is undermining Ireland’s climate action efforts by destroying carbon sinks that play a crucial role in carbon storage and climate regulation. Peatlands are among the most effective natural carbon storage systems, and their destruction releases stored carbon back into the atmosphere.
The operations are also causing irreversible damage to biodiversity by destroying unique ecosystems that have developed over thousands of years. These environments support specialized plant and animal species that cannot survive in other habitats.
Beyond environmental concerns, the report notes that peatlands represent “irreplaceable cultural and scientific amenity and resource,” highlighting their value for research, education, and cultural heritage.
The €40 million annual value of the illegal export trade demonstrates the commercial incentives driving unauthorized peat extraction. The 300,000 tonnes of peat being exported annually represents a substantial industrial operation that has apparently developed without proper oversight or environmental controls.
This scale of illegal activity suggests organized commercial operations rather than small-scale unauthorized harvesting, making enforcement more complex and requiring sustained legal action to shut down established businesses.
The EPA’s findings reveal significant challenges in Ireland’s environmental regulation system. The discovery of 38 illegal sites across seven counties suggests that unauthorized operations may have been developing for years without detection.
The ongoing court cases indicate that legal resolution of these issues will take time, during which environmental damage continues. The directive to local authorities for immediate enforcement action suggests urgency in stopping further destruction while legal proceedings continue.
The situation highlights the need for improved monitoring systems and potentially stronger penalties to deter illegal peat extraction, as well as better coordination between the EPA and local authorities in environmental enforcement.
With climate action and biodiversity protection becoming increasingly urgent priorities, the revelation of large-scale illegal peat extraction represents a significant setback for Ireland’s environmental objectives and underscores the challenges of balancing economic activities with environmental protection.