The government is being called on to urgently address the planning issue that is preventing peat harvesting from taking place in local bogs in this region.
Earlier this month it was revealed that hundreds of tonnes of peat had been imported from Latvia to a processor on the Longford-Westmeath border, despite the company being unable to cut peat just metres from its processing plant in Rathowen.
A court decision in 2019 ruled that peat harvesting required special permission and the government is currently trying to examine if they can expedite the process to seek 'substitute consent' for the practice.
Members of the horticulture industry as well as mushroom farmers and peat producers gathered at the Dail yesterday afternoon to highlight their concerns as local stocks begin to run out.
Roscommon senator Eugene Murphy and Longford representative Micheal Carrigy raised their concerns over the issue.
