Dear Editor,
No progress has been made in solving the Lough Funshinagh flooding problem.
In fact, the lives of those in the locality, those visiting the locality, and those who need to pass by on their daily business, have been worsened. This has been done by locking off a stretch of the public road, requiring very inconvenient detours.
This locked-off area of public road is very difficult to cope with. Not alone is it very poorly signposted for strangers, but it is indeed an impossible inconvenience for locals and strangers alike. This includes school attendance, businesses, church-goers, and, especially, farmers with fragmented holdings.
It is completely intolerable for the farming community. Livestock movement, fertilising and crop cultivation, winter fodder cutting and storage – it’s a nightmare. Some farmers in the surrounding area were at a major loss, with up to 60 acres and more of their holding flooded before this punishment was meted out to them by Roscommon County Council.
The Friends of the Irish Environment’s meddling has caused the world of stress, ill health, loss of income and heartbreak. Some farmers have lost perhaps half or more of their income. This includes loss of farm payments due to flooded acreage, stock number reduction, damage to buildings, etc.
It’s not tolerable that farmers have to make inconvenient detours several times a day to carry out their day’s work and earn an income. It’s not very pleasant for the inhabitants of the locked-in area either.
The problem requires immediate attention on behalf of the County Council and the people of the area. There is no way the situation can be allowed get any worse.
Yours sincerely,
Imelda Fitzgerald
