The Border now appears almost insignificant in official efforts to prevent a further outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease. Patrolling the hundreds of Border crossings has been left to Garda mobile units which mount temporary checkpoints but generally traffic flows freely from North to South.
The focus now, according to the Department of Agriculture, is on the ports and airports throughout Ireland and this approach is backed by the IFA. With both North and South disease free, there seems to be a consensus that it makes sense to work on an all-island basis and to divert manpower to the ports. Full co-operation between the authorities North and South is seen as vital.
There is also a belief that the extent of smuggling and the illegal movement of animals, highlighted by The Irish Times, is not the problem it was some months ago. However, since the confirmation over recent days of new cases in England, farmers' leaders are calling for extra vigilance.
The Co Donegal chairman of the IFA, Mr George O'Hagan, said Garda mobile patrols should be stepped up. But he was most concerned about movement through ports and airports. All drivers coming through ports should be asked where they had been.
Garda Supt Denis Roche, of Manorhamilton, Co Leitrim, said he believed the mobile patrols were effective. "There are three cars out patrolling the Border area 24 hours a day, in addition to the guards based in the different stations."
These three Garda cars cover some 90 kilometres of Border from west Cavan through north Leitrim over to Bundoran. The principal crossing in the region is at Blacklion/Belcoo on the N16, the main road from Sligo to Enniskillen.
Last Tuesday afternoon the only reminder of foot-and-mouth controls was a black mark left on the road where automatic spraying equipment had been installed until July 21st, when permanent checkpoints were dismantled.
While the route is used by freight traffic going to the port of Larne, there was little evidence of animals being moved. In the course of an hour only one livestock lorry passed and nobody stopped the driver to ask what he was carrying. Locals said they had seen checkpoints at certain times. One commented: "There isn't much going on that they (the gardai) don't know about." Mr O'Hagan supported the Garda view that it would be difficult to get animals over the Border without being checked.
Supt Jim Gallagher, based in Letterkenny, confirmed that 15 cattle had been seized at Lifford, one of the main crossings into Co Donegal, last week. The cattle had tags and cards from the Republic and the driver said he started his journey in Monaghan but had gone through the North as a short cut to Donegal. The Department of Agriculture is investigating the matter.
Supt Gallagher said few cattle had been seized. At the height of the alert, when every Border road was manned, most of the seizures consisted of meat or dairy products, often concealed among other goods.
Smuggling and illegal movement of animals does not appear to be causing as much concern as earlier in the year. The view among the farming community is if the Northern authorities do their job properly there isn't such a risk.
The superintendent veterinary inspector for Leitrim, Mr Micheal Mac Giolla Ri, said he believed illegal movements had been "tightened up considerably" since the introduction of stricter regulations.
"I've no reason to believe it is happening, because if there was any evidence of it we'd be acting on it - even on suspicion of it. Any guy would be a fool to break the regulations now."
Mr Mac Giolla Ri said Department officials were not carrying out Border checks. They had a four-month backlog of work to catch up on, and there would be "huge costs" involved.