Sinn Féin spokesperson on Agriculture, Martin Kenny TD, has called on the Minister for Agriculture to initiate a review of low emission slurry spreading (LESS) investments under the TAMS 3 scheme to include dribble bars.

Teachta Kenny said:

“The removal of the dribble bar from LESS TAMS 3 investment will cause huge financial burdens on farmers throughout the country. The dribble bar was included in TAMS 2 and it was proven to reduce emissions from slurry spreading drastically. What has changed that the dribble bar is no longer eligible for funding?

“Many farmers who have small and medium sized slurry tanks could adapt and fit dribble bars to their existing tanks. This is not possible with the trailing shoe mechanism. It is a far heavier piece of equipment and is only suited to flat ground. It cannot be attached to farmers’ existing tanks and is considered unsafe on hilly and uneven ground due to its weight.

“Farmers will be forced to invest in a new slurry tank with a trailing shoe which is a huge financial investment or else they will have to hire a contractor to spread the slurry for them. We saw last year the pressure that contractors were under trying to get slurry spread before the deadline and this is only going to add to that pressure in the future.

“The Minister needs to be practical about this and listen to farmers and farm organisations. I would ask that he initiate a review of LESS investments under TAMS 3 and include investment for dribble bars.”