Concerns have been raised by environmental organisations over the risk of fireblight from imports of hawthorn, which is also called whitethorn, for the Agri Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES).

Hedgerows Ireland, An Taisce, and the Environmental Pillar urge Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue to take "decisive action" on the risk of fireblight in Ireland.

In an open letter to Minister McConalogue, the environmental organisations said that the "same mistake" must not be made with the "danger" posed by fireblight as with ash dieback.

"Ireland is still managing the fallout from ash dieback, which was most likely introduced through imports from EU member states," according to the open letter.

Fireblight is a bacterial disease whose common hosts include hawthorn, cotoneaster, apple, pear, and rowan. Affected trees must be destroyed, according to Hedgerows Ireland.

Symptoms include the "withering of shoots and leaves, cankers, and bacterial ooze". Fireblight enters through latent infections on imported plants and is suited to Ireland's temperate climate.

The plant disease is "widespread" in Northern Ireland and was confirmed by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) in 17 outbreaks in 2023, the open letter states.

In order to protect Ireland’s hedgerows, Hedgerows Ireland, An Taisce, and the Environmental Pillar ask the DAFM to:

Reinstate the Irish provenance/Irish origin requirements for Hawthorn in ACRES hedgerow planting, and delay planting actions until the demand-supply gap is filled;
Suspend imports of hawthorn plants due to the potential risk of importing disease;
Clarify how natural and cultural hedgerow heritage was assessed when deciding the Generic Contingency Plan’s alert status for fireblight.
Continue to promote funding for native tree nurseries under the seed stand and seed orchard schemes plus the investment aid for the development of the forest tree nursery sector scheme.

"The implications of an outbreak of fireblight in the Irish countryside is unthinkable. We’re in the midst of a biodiversity crisis, and our remaining hedgerows are a lifeline for nature.

"The ill-advised importation of hawthorn could ultimately lead to the widescale loss of valuable hedging throughout the land," head of advocacy with An Taisce, Dr. Elaine McGoff said.

This would have "dire consequences" for Ireland's "beleaguered" birds, mammals, and insects, with knock-on impacts on water quality, according to Dr. McGoff.

Hedgerows Ireland, An Taisce, and the Environmental Pillar are asking the public to sign their open letter to advocate for urgent government action on this issue.