Wildfires in Kerry halved in 2022 compared to the same period last year, preliminary figures show.
Statistics from Kerry County Council covering January to September show a 46% decrease in call-outs to out-of-control wildfires labelled "gorse" with 111 recorded, down from 205 for the same period last year.
Since 2010 call-outs to this category have fallen by multiples of this figure from 600 in 2010 to 200 in 2021.
However a blanket of smoke which covered An Daingean town before Christmas is leading to calls for an all year round ban on the practice of setting a match to the hills to clear gorse and scrub for grazing.
Burning of commonage is banned under the Wildlife Acts from March to September.
In April 2021, the whole of Killarney National Park was threatened after a fire, sparked from within the park, got out of control.
It has not been established what caused the fire but gardaí believe it was accidental.
A report commissioned by the National Parks and Wildlife Service is yet to be published.
A spokesman for the National Parks and Wildlife Service said: "The NPWS frequently meets with the Fire Officer and Local Fire Officer of Kerry County Council to discuss fire patrols, monitoring and other necessary activity with regard to fire prevention."
The dramatic drop is due to a number of reasons including public awareness but also the withdrawal of grants from farmers whose land is burned during the season when it is illegal to burn, the council said.
There is also greater understanding of good practice and controlled burning and in recent years the fire service is notified by farmers and hill grazers.
"It has become the pattern in Kerry that the vast majority of controlled burns are pre-notified to the fire control centre and inappropriate fire service callouts are avoided," the council spokesman said.
However a blanket of smoke that descended on An Daingean on 15 December has led to mounting anger in west Kerry with local GP and Green Party activist Dr Peadar O'Fionnáin questioning why gorse burning is allowed at any time during the year.
The GP spoke out after large numbers of people arrived at his surgery complaining of breathing difficulties.
"Burning down an ecosystem for little reason. Why is this still legal?" Dr O' Fionnáin asked on Twitter.
There was a lot of anger in An Daingean over the fires when the hillsides overlooking the town were set alight, he said, leading to increases in asthma attacks and the use of inhalers.
Kerry County Councillor Johnny Healy-Rae has called for an extension of the burning season to take into account weather patterns in Kerry.
"If they stop burning altogether, we will have complete overgrowth, " Mr Healy-Rae said.
He wants the burning season extended so farmers can burn in March to encourage spring growth.
"The reality is there is very little time - really only one week when you can burn, and the percentage of land being burned in Kerry is tiny," the independent councillor said.
Farmers were highly responsible in burning, he added.
