[Innes Rothach - Presenter] Thèid iarraidh air Riaghaltas na h-Alba tuilleadh airgid a thoirt do sgeamaichean ann an Uibhist airson smachd fhaighinn air àireamh nan gèadh. Tha eagal air croitearan gum fàs na h-eòin nas lìonmhoire buileach nuair a thig sgeama dìon nam machraichean gu crìoch san t-fhoghar, an ath-bhliadhna. Tha an aithris seo aig Doneil MacLeòid
[Doneil MacLeòid – neach-aithris] Rinn Dualchas Nàdair na h-Alba obair ann an cuid de sgìrean a dh’ fheuchainn ri tomhas fhaighinn air dè na th’ ann de gheòidh anns na h-Eileanan an Iar. Tha a h-uile coltas ann gu bheil an àireamh dhiubh a’ sìor dhol am meud ann an àiteachan anns an fharsaingeachd.
[Doneil MacLeòid – neach-aithris] Airson bliadhnaichean, tha croitearan anns na h-Uibhistean air a bhith a’ gearain air geòidh anns na sgìrean aca, ag ràdh gu bheil iad nan crois dhaibh, le bhith ag ithe agus a’ milleadh ‘s a’ gannrachadh ann an talamh-àitich agus ionaltraidh. Agus, tha iad cuideachd ag ràdh nach eil iad a’ faighinn taic gu leòr bho na h-ùghdarrasan airson dèiligeadh leis an t-suidheachadh seo.
[Ena NicDhòmhnaill] Tha e dìreach mar... ‘s ann a shaoileadh tu nach robh fhios aca dè bha a’ tachairt, ‘s tha mi aig an doras seo, ‘s tha iad air tighinn, ‘s tha iad air faicinn, dè am math tha sin? Bidh mi uaireannan a’ dùrachdainn dìreach grèim fhaighinn orra-san, ’s an sròn a chur ann!
[Doneil MacLeòid – neach-aithris] Thig sgeama dìon nam machraichean gu ceann anns an t-fhoghar an ath-bhliadhna, rud a tha dìon bàrr bhon a’ gheòidh le bhith gan sealg.
[Ena NicDhòmhnaill] Tha seo a’ sgur, tha machair project an seo. ‘S iadsan a th’air a bhith a’ riaghladh seo o chionn trì bliadhna, ach chan eil air fhàgail ach aon bhliadhna, ‘s deireadh an fhoghair-sa tighinn, cha bhi an còrr protection againne, ach tha e a’ smaoineachail, ach tha sinne a’ dol a dh’fheuchainn, sàbaid, mar a thuirt iad, lobbyeadh an riaghaltais, feuch an toir iad seachad tuilleadh airgid.
[Doneil MacLeòid – neach-aithris] Aig an aon àm, tha Dualchas Nàdair na h-Alba a’ ruith sgeama, Adaptive, a tha a’ toirt maoineachadh do dhaoine ann an Uibhist na geòidh a shealg. Thathas a’ cumail a-mach nan robh barrachd airgid ga chur air cùl seo gun cuidicheadh sin lùghdachadh susbainteach a thoirt air a th’ ann de gheòidh, gu h-àraidh nuair a thig sgeama dìon nam machraichean gu ceann
[Ena NicDhòmhnaill] A bharrachd air an arbhar, cuireadh tu a-mach silage dha na beathaichean aig an àm seo den bhliadhna. Agus tha na geòidh air a’ mhullach, tha iad ag ithe, cha mhòr a’ cheart uimhir ri na beathaichean. Agus chan e a-mhàin na tha iad ag ithe, ach na tha iad a’ milleadh. Tha iad dìreach ga ghannrachadh, chan urrainn g’eil e math dhaibh. Cuiridh tu, ‘s dòcha, eòrna air an talamh dhaibh son ithe. Agus tha fios g’eil na beathaichean bochda ag ithe salchar nan gèadh. Dh’fhaodadh iad a bhith a’ faighinn galaran, bidh mi uaireannan a’ smaoineachadh, tha fios gu bheil iad. Dh‘fhaodadh iad salmonella fhaighinn, dh ‘fhaodadh iad rud sam bith fhaighinn.
[Doneil MacLeòid – neach-aithris] Tha an àireamh de gheòidh air a bhith ag èirigh anns na h-Eileanan thar nam bliadhnaichean le daoine a’ togail nach eil uimhir a' sealag ‘s a bha. Bha cuid ag ràdh gur ann nas doirbhe buileach a bhios e croitearachd a chumail a’ dol, mur a tèid smachd ceart fhaighinn air geòidh ann an sgìrean àiteachais anns na h-Eileanan an Iar. Doneil MacLeòid, BBC An Là, Na h-Uibhistean.
[Innes Munro - Presenter] A request will be made to the Scotland Government for more money to schemes in Uist to get control on the number of geese. Crofters are frightened that the birds will grow a bit more plentiful when the scheme to save the machairs comes to the end in the autumn, next year. This report with Doneil MacLeod
[Doneil MacLeod – Reporter] Scottish Natural Heritage did work in may of the areas to try and measure how many geese are in the Western Isles. It would appear that the number of them is constantly growing in places, in general.
[Doneil MacLeod – Reporter] For years, crofters in the Uists have been complaining about geese in their districts, saying that it is a cross they have to bear, with eating, destruction and honking in the arable and pasture lands. And they also say that they are not getting enough help from landlords to deal with this situation.
[Ena MacDonald] It’s just like … you wonder if they don’t know what is going on, and I’m at the door and they are coming and they can see, what good is that? Sometimes, I just want to get a hold of them and put their noses in!
[Doneil MacLeod – Reporter] The machair protection project will end in the autumn next year, something that protects the top from the geese by hunting them.
[Ena MacDonald] This is stopping, this machair project. They have been governing this for three years, and only one year is left, at the end of next autumn, we won’t have any more protection, it’s a contemplative, but we are going to try, to fight, as they said, lobbying, the government, to try and get them to give us more money.
[Doneil MacLeod – Reporter] At the same time, Scottish Natural Heritage are running a scheme, Adaptive, that gives funding to people in Uist to hunt the geese. The explain thatif there was more money behind this that this would help the substantial decline of geese, especially when the machair protection scheme comes to an end.
[Ena MacDonald] In addition to corn, you put out silage for the animals at this time of year. And the geese are on top of it, they are eating it, about the same amount as the animals. And it’s not just what they are eating, it’s what they wreck. They just pollute it, it can’t be good for them. You’ll put, maybe, barley on the ground to eat. And you know that the animals are eating bird droppings. They could be getting diseases, I often think that they are. They could be getting salmonella, they could be getting any sort of thing.
[Doneil MacLeod – Reporter] The number of geese has been rising in the Islands through the years as there is not the number of people that there once was. Many are saying that it will be a bit more difficult to keep crofting going, if correct control is maintained over the geese in arable districts in the Western Isles. Doneil MacLeòid, BBC An Là, The Uists.
[Innes Rothach - Presenter] Thèid iarraidh air Riaghaltas na h-Alba tuilleadh airgid a thoirt do sgeamaichean ann an Uibhist airson smachd fhaighinn air àireamh nan gèadh. Tha eagal air croitearan gum fàs na h-eòin nas lìonmhoire buileach nuair a thig sgeama dìon nam machraichean gu crìoch san t-fhoghar, an ath-bhliadhna. Tha an aithris seo aig Doneil MacLeòid
[Doneil MacLeòid – neach-aithris] Rinn Dualchas Nàdair na h-Alba obair ann an cuid de sgìrean a dh’ fheuchainn ri tomhas fhaighinn air dè na th’ ann de gheòidh anns na h-Eileanan an Iar. Tha a h-uile coltas ann gu bheil an àireamh dhiubh a’ sìor dhol am meud ann an àiteachan anns an fharsaingeachd.
[Doneil MacLeòid – neach-aithris] Airson bliadhnaichean, tha croitearan anns na h-Uibhistean air a bhith a’ gearain air geòidh anns na sgìrean aca, ag ràdh gu bheil iad nan crois dhaibh, le bhith ag ithe agus a’ milleadh ‘s a’ gannrachadh ann an talamh-àitich agus ionaltraidh. Agus, tha iad cuideachd ag ràdh nach eil iad a’ faighinn taic gu leòr bho na h-ùghdarrasan airson dèiligeadh leis an t-suidheachadh seo.
[Ena NicDhòmhnaill] Tha e dìreach mar... ‘s ann a shaoileadh tu nach robh fhios aca dè bha a’ tachairt, ‘s tha mi aig an doras seo, ‘s tha iad air tighinn, ‘s tha iad air faicinn, dè am math tha sin? Bidh mi uaireannan a’ dùrachdainn dìreach grèim fhaighinn orra-san, ’s an sròn a chur ann!
[Doneil MacLeòid – neach-aithris] Thig sgeama dìon nam machraichean gu ceann anns an t-fhoghar an ath-bhliadhna, rud a tha dìon bàrr bhon a’ gheòidh le bhith gan sealg.
[Ena NicDhòmhnaill] Tha seo a’ sgur, tha machair project an seo. ‘S iadsan a th’air a bhith a’ riaghladh seo o chionn trì bliadhna, ach chan eil air fhàgail ach aon bhliadhna, ‘s deireadh an fhoghair-sa tighinn, cha bhi an còrr protection againne, ach tha e a’ smaoineachail, ach tha sinne a’ dol a dh’fheuchainn, sàbaid, mar a thuirt iad, lobbyeadh an riaghaltais, feuch an toir iad seachad tuilleadh airgid.
[Doneil MacLeòid – neach-aithris] Aig an aon àm, tha Dualchas Nàdair na h-Alba a’ ruith sgeama, Adaptive, a tha a’ toirt maoineachadh do dhaoine ann an Uibhist na geòidh a shealg. Thathas a’ cumail a-mach nan robh barrachd airgid ga chur air cùl seo gun cuidicheadh sin lùghdachadh susbainteach a thoirt air a th’ ann de gheòidh, gu h-àraidh nuair a thig sgeama dìon nam machraichean gu ceann
[Ena NicDhòmhnaill] A bharrachd air an arbhar, cuireadh tu a-mach silage dha na beathaichean aig an àm seo den bhliadhna. Agus tha na geòidh air a’ mhullach, tha iad ag ithe, cha mhòr a’ cheart uimhir ri na beathaichean. Agus chan e a-mhàin na tha iad ag ithe, ach na tha iad a’ milleadh. Tha iad dìreach ga ghannrachadh, chan urrainn g’eil e math dhaibh. Cuiridh tu, ‘s dòcha, eòrna air an talamh dhaibh son ithe. Agus tha fios g’eil na beathaichean bochda ag ithe salchar nan gèadh. Dh’fhaodadh iad a bhith a’ faighinn galaran, bidh mi uaireannan a’ smaoineachadh, tha fios gu bheil iad. Dh‘fhaodadh iad salmonella fhaighinn, dh ‘fhaodadh iad rud sam bith fhaighinn.
[Doneil MacLeòid – neach-aithris] Tha an àireamh de gheòidh air a bhith ag èirigh anns na h-Eileanan thar nam bliadhnaichean le daoine a’ togail nach eil uimhir a' sealag ‘s a bha. Bha cuid ag ràdh gur ann nas doirbhe buileach a bhios e croitearachd a chumail a’ dol, mur a tèid smachd ceart fhaighinn air geòidh ann an sgìrean àiteachais anns na h-Eileanan an Iar. Doneil MacLeòid, BBC An Là, Na h-Uibhistean.
[Innes Munro - Presenter] A request will be made to the Scotland Government for more money to schemes in Uist to get control on the number of geese. Crofters are frightened that the birds will grow a bit more plentiful when the scheme to save the machairs comes to the end in the autumn, next year. This report with Doneil MacLeod
[Doneil MacLeod – Reporter] Scottish Natural Heritage did work in may of the areas to try and measure how many geese are in the Western Isles. It would appear that the number of them is constantly growing in places, in general.
[Doneil MacLeod – Reporter] For years, crofters in the Uists have been complaining about geese in their districts, saying that it is a cross they have to bear, with eating, destruction and honking in the arable and pasture lands. And they also say that they are not getting enough help from landlords to deal with this situation.
[Ena MacDonald] It’s just like … you wonder if they don’t know what is going on, and I’m at the door and they are coming and they can see, what good is that? Sometimes, I just want to get a hold of them and put their noses in!
[Doneil MacLeod – Reporter] The machair protection project will end in the autumn next year, something that protects the top from the geese by hunting them.
[Ena MacDonald] This is stopping, this machair project. They have been governing this for three years, and only one year is left, at the end of next autumn, we won’t have any more protection, it’s a contemplative, but we are going to try, to fight, as they said, lobbying, the government, to try and get them to give us more money.
[Doneil MacLeod – Reporter] At the same time, Scottish Natural Heritage are running a scheme, Adaptive, that gives funding to people in Uist to hunt the geese. The explain thatif there was more money behind this that this would help the substantial decline of geese, especially when the machair protection scheme comes to an end.
[Ena MacDonald] In addition to corn, you put out silage for the animals at this time of year. And the geese are on top of it, they are eating it, about the same amount as the animals. And it’s not just what they are eating, it’s what they wreck. They just pollute it, it can’t be good for them. You’ll put, maybe, barley on the ground to eat. And you know that the animals are eating bird droppings. They could be getting diseases, I often think that they are. They could be getting salmonella, they could be getting any sort of thing.
[Doneil MacLeod – Reporter] The number of geese has been rising in the Islands through the years as there is not the number of people that there once was. Many are saying that it will be a bit more difficult to keep crofting going, if correct control is maintained over the geese in arable districts in the Western Isles. Doneil MacLeòid, BBC An Là, The Uists.