Over 150 billion litres of water fell on West Kerry in March

OVER 150 million tonnes of rain fell on West Kerry in the month of March, leaving the land sodden and stalling normal farming operations.

Farmers and agricultural contractors are facing a crisis with essential land management activity on hold until the rain eases enough for the land to dry out. According to agricultural contractor Tomás Devane in Lios Póil, normal spring farming activities such as spreading fertiliser, slurry and lime, which are essential for producing quality grass, are behind schedule as the land is too wet for heavy machinery.

March has been exceptionally wet, with only five dry days in the entire month. A week of fine weather would allow the land to drain, Tomás said, but the dry days on March 8, 9, 10, 20 and 28, were too spread out and didn’t give sufficient time for the land to dry out before the next downfall.

“It is very hard, very tough on the farmers and on everyone,” said Tomás. “It needs a week of dry weather to be able to get machines on the land.”

With more rain expected before this weekend, there’s no immediate hope of a reprieve for farmers and contractors.

The problem is compounded by a growing shortage of fodder for animals, with many still housed since the winter. “There are problems with the shortage of fodder and when it is in short supply the price goes up,” said Tomás.

Meanwhile, according to readings from the weather stations installed by Sacred Heart University around West Kerry, 269.8mm of rain fell in the Milltown River Catchment area during March. The university’s weather station on the Feothanach River measured 215.8mm of rain, more than 20 per cent less than the volume Milltown.

In 2021 SHU installed weather monitoring and measuring stations in the catchment areas of the Milltown, Feothanach and Owenmore rivers and these continue to record weather conditions, with the live readings published on the shuindingle.com website.

The data shows that March 13 was the wettest day of the month, with 46mm of rain falling in the Milltown river catchment area. On the same day the Feothanach river catchment area was again much less wet, with 29.8mm of rain recorded there. Due to technical difficulties comparative data for the Owenmore river was not available.

When the rainfall is averaged out over the land area of West Kerry, the figures are staggering. In March, over 150 billion litres – or over 150 million tonnes – of rain fell on us.