Ireland's Wildfires: 4,355 Hectares Burned in 31 Fires, Highest Since 2017

Ireland experienced significant wildfires in late May, following a dry spell. Blazes affected the south Dublin Mountains and Wicklow, with the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) stating one was intentionally set, destroying hundreds of hectares of habitat. Another fire, reportedly caused by disposable barbecues, incinerated Bray Head. Earlier, Mount Leinster in Co Carlow also burned.

In 2022, 4,355 hectares were burned across Ireland in 31 fires, the highest number since 2017, though lower than 2011. In 2017, the Irish Wildlife Trust reported 97 fires in 19 counties, with 40% in protected areas. While the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) now issues vigilance alerts, and 283 farmers were penalized in 2025 for burnt land (up from 52), prosecutions for illegal burning (March-August) are rare and fines low; a Galway landowner was fined only €750 in 2022.

Conflicting messages persist; Teagasc in 2022 and the Irish Farmers’ Journal in 2023 discussed burning's role in upland management. Climate change exacerbates the issue; 2025 was Ireland's second-warmest year, with an unusual February dry spell. Upland peatlands, vital carbon stores, are vulnerable due to a century of drainage, turf mining, and over-grazing.

Recommendations include prohibiting all countryside burning, Teagasc researching non-burning upland farming, creating a Wildlife Crime Unit, and increasing fines (e.g., Australia's 14-year prison sentence or €74,000 fine for intentional fires). Improved communication and signage in fire-prone areas are also needed. Land use changes are crucial: promoting native trees (less likely to burn), blocking drains in peatlands, ending peat extraction, and redirecting farming subsidies from free-roaming sheep to rewilding or low-intensity farming. These measures offer benefits beyond fire reduction, including flood prevention and carbon storage.