The Farmers’ Union of Wales will soon start working with the Welsh Regional Fire Services to coordinate a service which will protect farms and grazing land from wildfires.
By taking advantage of the Fire Service’s partnership with Llethrau Llon, the Union will spread the message about the project with their members by arranging for Jeremy Turner, the Fire Service’s Farm Liaison Officer, to visit the counties during their monthly meetings.
Speaking about the scheme Jeremy said: “Our hope is to engage directly with the farmers with the help and guidance of the FUW in order to arrange to visit individual farms to discuss a plan that will address several aspects of preventing fires on their land.”
These include offering support and guidance to farmers, graziers and land owners in order to protect any controlled burning activities by providing a Burning Plan which will discuss burning techniques, fire barriers and how to control vegetation with alternative methods.
There will also be a hay bale temperature testing service available on request with a fire officer visiting the farm to use special equipment to record the temperature and humidity of the bales to prevent spontaneous combustion.
The major concern of farmers and smallholders is the damage to livestock when a wildfire breaks out through a farm and across the land. On top of the worry of the devastating effect on the farm buildings and the land, losing an animal to a fire is a huge distress and therefore special equipment is available together with rescue teams to reduce the risk to the animals.
At the heart of every farm is the farmhouse and of course, this needs to be protected as much as the buildings, land and livestock. As part of the free service, a fire officer will also offer advice and practical help such as installing smoke and Carbon Monoxide alarms in order to reduce the risk and protect against the destructive effects of fire on the home.
As a Union, we are eager to address the mitigation of the effects of wildfires on agricultural or grazed land and we will meet again with the Fire Services and the Farm and Countryside Liaison Officers over the coming weeks and months to develop a strategy for the next 5-10 years.
Speaking about the new partnership and the opportunity to work together with the Fire Services across Wales, FUW President Glyn Roberts said:
“We are very grateful to the Welsh Fire Service for the opportunity to work with them in developing the Llethrau Llon scheme and are eager to spread the message about the all-important and essential service available to farmers, land owners and grazers to protect their property from the devastating effects of wildfire – which is free of charge.”
