Balancing Policy, Vegetation and Fire Risk in Ireland's Uplands

Abstract

This paper explores the intersection of agricultural policy, land management, and wildfire risk in Ireland's upland regions, with a particular focus on the unintended consequences of Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Specifically, I investigate the shift towards extensification under recent CAP reforms, which has led to a decline in livestock numbers and subsequent undergrazing in parts of the Irish uplands. While these changes may have contributed to improvements to lands overgrazed by sheep in parts of the country, they may have also facilitated the encroachment of scrub vegetation, which can disrupt native habitats and heighten wildfire risk. I examine how CAP's Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS) payments may incentivise field burning to maintain grazable land, thus exacerbating fire hazards in sensitive upland ecosystems. I further consider the role of rural depopulation and an ageing farming population in diminishing active land management, complicating fire risk mitigation efforts. This paper advocates for the development of integrated policies that balance agricultural productivity with ecological and fire risk considerations, proposing more adaptive policy frameworks that address both the socio-economic and ecological dynamics of upland farming.