The owner of an Irish pub caught up in a Turf war after it was told off over its traditional peat fire is sick of woke rubbish and told critics theres something severely lacking in you.
JJ Houghs Singing Pub, in Banagher, Ireland, sparked a row after posting a picture to their Facebook page of two customers innocently enjoying the small fire.
But local tourist centre Working Holiday Ireland was not happy about the use of turf (also called peat) as fuel and decided to publicly reprimand the owners of the 250-year-old pub, declaring Carbon footprint guys…
The traditional bar fired back and now owner Gerald Hough has gone further, telling MailOnline exactly where he stands on the criticism.
He said: We have two fireplaces, two open fires, and its our only way of heating the pub, and I post a picture every year of whoever is sitting there at the time. If you garner something about climate change from that, it means theres something severely lacking in you.
Gerald Hough has told MailOnline exactly where he stands on the criticism of his pub fire
The pub posted this picture to their Facebook page on Friday with the caption First fire of the season
JJ Houghs Singing Pub, in Banagher, Ireland is a 250-year-old family run establishment
Im not against flying but the page that commented [Working Holiday Ireland], they bring in people from abroad. Its the hypocrisy that annoys me more because Im not going around commenting on other peoples pages on what they do and dont do.
I looked at their page and they have a post from a pub. Shawns Bar in Atlone. Its the oldest pub in Ireland. Its about 20 min away from us, and they have a picture of a fire lit in that pub in 2019. So its the hypocrisy that really annoys me more than anything.
Mr Hough also highlighted the importance of gathering round a fire for social reasons.
Local tourist centre Working Holiday Ireland was not happy about the use of turf as fuel and decided to publicly reprimand the owners of the 250-year-old pub
JJ Houghs made a separate post the day after Working Holiday Irelands comment doubling down on their position
He said: The picture is to evoke a kind of a feeling of coming together. The fire, since humans appeared on the planet is how culture and language evolved - through the fulcrum of the fire.
So the fire disappearing its more of a metaphor for humankind nowadays. If you build a house, youre not allowed to put a fireplace in. So were slowly eroding all these things that bring us together.
The chat beside the fire, although sometimes it can be lewd and lascivious, is also great craic and thats the meaning of our pub. Come in and pull up a stool, and youll get chatting to someone. Strangers become friends at the end of the night, and its all done around a fire. A bit of music at the end of the night over a few beers. And thats basically it. So to snipe about carbon emissions and carbon footprints is is laughable.
Turf fires have been used to heat rooms and cook food in Ireland for centuries but it has been a hot topic of debate in recent years as they release a lot of carbon dioxide.
When the row first blew up JJ Houghs quipped back at the tourist centre in a lengthy and brutal reply that received thousands of likes online.
The pub said: Its how we heat the pub. Looking at your page you rely on tourists from abroad coming to Ireland correct? How do they get here? They hardly swam.
How would you quantify and compare the emissions of a Boeing 747 to a small turf fire. How do your guests get around Ireland when they arrive, do they walk?
I also see by your page you promote Dunnes Stores, who have 138 stores in Ireland and abroad, do you query their carbon footprint? When your guests are here do you check their clothing to ensure they arent made of synthetic polyester,a byproduct of petroleum. Did you write your critique of my turf fire on a phone or laptop? Both of which were developed and are powered by fossil fuel technology.
Maybe think before criticising a small family run pubs turf fire. Maybe call in some day and Ill give you my carbon footprint up your hole.
Turf, also known as peat, is made of partially decayed plants and is harvested from peatlands by turf-cutters.
Turf, also known as peat, is made of partially decayed plants and is harvested from peatlands by turf-cutters. Pictured: file photo of peatlands in Scotland
The local Air Pollution Act, which dates back to the 1980s, states that people excessively burning solid fuels can face a hefty fine of almost €13,000 (£10,956) or jail but it falls on local councils to enforce it, which they rarely do. Pictured: a file photo of a turf fire
It forms over the course of millions of years as the wet conditions slows the process of plant decomposition.
In October 2022, the Republic of Ireland banned turf-cutters from selling turf and other solid fuels like smoky coal and wet wood online or in retail premises but they can still sell them privately if they have the necessary turbary rights.
Turbary rights are the rights to cut and take turf away from an agreed area of land and are often attached to rural homes and have a property folio number as proof. Most people in Ireland buy turf from local turf-cutters with these rights.
However, the local Air Pollution Act, which dates back to the 1980s, has not been changed. The law states that people excessively burning solid fuels can face a hefty fine of almost €13,000 (£10,956) or jail but it falls on local councils to enforce it, which they rarely do.
Mr Hough has his own bog which he is legally allowed to cut turf from which is just two miles away from the pub.
We gather our own turf, we bring it in. Were not shipping in stuff. Were not bringing in oil from wherever. Its a local thing and we harvest a small bit of turf just to keep two fires going to heat our pub. Its a sustainable practice, he said.
He added: I took over from my father in 2018, he took over from his father in the seventies. My grandfather bought the pub in the forties and it was a pub since about 1640. So were renewable resource.
Im so sick of all this woke rubbish! And you know the response I got, it just shows that the silent majority is not on board with it. Cancel culture is alive and well and thats with everything you talk about, any subject.
Ive seen a few negative comments back at me going "oh, youre this, youre that but I just put up my picture. Theyre the ones who commented on me. So yeah, you know back off alright.
People have since flocked to Working Holiday Irelands Facebook page to leave comments under their posts about the tourist centres carbon footprint and to stick up for the pubs right to burn a small turf fire.
A spokesperson for Working Holiday Ireland told MailOnline: Working Holiday Ireland is committed to helping Ireland reduce its carbon footprint and meet its carbon emissions targets as per the Paris Climate Agreement.
However, judging from recent IPCC reports we as a global community are well off target. The innocent comment was made in the vain of everyone pulling together and doing what ever they can, no matter how small, to help in the fight against this growing climate crisis. We can already see the devastation and destruction current extreme weather events are having on our planet and things are only going to get worse if that kind of “laissez faire” attitude continues.
I am sure we all have friends around the world who have felt the brunt of these extreme weather events and would appreciate all efforts, no matter how small. If we keep moving forward like this without taking responsibility all of our intertwined futures on this planet will not be sustainable.
I believe Ireland as a whole has it very easy compared to other countries and should set an example for others to follow. As Sir David Attenborough put it “we need immediate action to stop this extinction crisis…what happens next is up to everyone one of us!”. I do appreciate the heritage significance of “turf” in Ireland but it’s time for small sacrifices for a greater good, who knows if we stop burning turf today maybe future generations might be able to enjoy the cultural and heritage significance of it in the future.