Timber produced in the west stays in the west

The argument that timber produced in west of Ireland forests is processed elsewhere has often been made by those who oppose forestry.

They maintain that forestry is not a major contributor to local economies and while jobs are created in the establishment of forests, they argue that the added value and employment benefits are lost locally when the forests are harvested.

To test the merit of this case, a group of journalists from the Irish Farmers Journal recently visited forests and timber processor in counties Galway and Leitrim.

Along the way we met sawmillers, log purchasers, wood energy producers, an award winning forest owner and representatives of Western Forestry Co-op; the only forestry company that specialises in farm forestry.

First up to reject the argument that the benefits of forestry lie outside communities was Marina Conway, chief executive, Western Forestry Co-op.

Local forestry

“We now have a circular economy in counties such as Leitrim, Sligo, Galway, Mayo, Roscommon and Cavan where timber is processed in a variety of ways in the area and revenue from sales and purchases of logs and their processing value is retained in the locality as well,” she says.

She makes the distinction here between the co-op’s farm forest owners and non-farmer growers and investors, which are often larger in scale. A few decades ago, private forests were owned by a small cohort of growers. Now, private forest owners – mainly farmers – have increased their share of the forest estate, especially in counties Roscommon, (68%), Leitrim (54%), and Sligo(57%), while Coillte is still the dominant forest owner in Galway and Mayo (Table 1, see below).

“Farmers who harvest timber in Leitrim through Western Forestry Co-op, sell locally to mills such as Crowes in Mohill, Masonite, Carrick-on-Shannon and wood energy outlets such as McCauley Wood Fuels, Mohill, McMorrow Woodchip in Dowra and local firewood merchants,” maintains Conway.

“These are examples of the forest circular economy which is locally based. For example, locally harvested timber is harvested into construction, stakes and other fencing material by Crowes’s, John McHale Ltd in Hazelwood, Sligo and McHugh Timber Products Ltd, Killeshandra, Co Cavan.

"These in turn, sell their products to builders and farmers through outlets such as NWTH, Kilclare and other builder providers and hardware stores in Leitrim and surrounding counties”.

Wood energy in the west

Wood energy is finally being recognised as a major renewable heating sector, as Ireland will need to heat 200,000 houses with wood biomass by 2030. McCauley Wood Fuels has been operating in this market area since 2008. Run by father and son – Brian and Kenny – the operation capitalises on Leitrim’s high level of productive private forests. These supply most of the 10,000m3 of small pulpwood logs annually, which the McCauleys require to run their biomass business.

While we were at the mill outside Mohill, an articulated truckload of logs was being unloaded in the spotless yard and minutes later a large container arrived, which was filled with woodchips for a seaweed processing facility in Mayo.

The McCauley operation is extremely efficient. The big difference now compared with the operation a few years ago, when I visited the plant, is the absence of a log stockpile where logs were dried over a number of months.

Since then, the McCauleys invested in a second-hand mechanical ‘tumble’ dryer, which dries chips rapidly.

Air drying is inconsistent and can take months, depending on the weather. Mechanical drying has removed the need for costly stockpiling and has increased production. “During air drying, we were only supplying three boilers, now we are delivering to 17 boilers,” Kenny McCauley says.

They keep the log supply in the yard to a minimum. “We chip, dry and supply on a tight schedule to hotels, nursing homes, piggeries and other small businesses mainly in the west and northwest, but we also have clients in Dublin and elsewhere.”

Sourcing logs is a challenge for McCauleys, as demand is strong from the wood based panel (WBP) sector such as Masonite and other producers of wood chips in the area including McMorrow Woodchip based in Kilmore, Dowra.

The recent announcement to reactivate the biomass energy plant in Killala is also likely to stimulate interest in wood energy. This plant, has an estimated capacity of 380,000t, with 40% of material expected to be sourced in Ireland.

Award-winning forest

Sean Creamer a farmer based outside Ballinamore and winner of the Teagasc RDS farm forestry award last year is a strong exponent of species diversification, which he has achieved on his farm under the guidance of forestry advisor, Victor Barber, Western Forestry Co-op.

The species chosen include a mixture of ‘minor conifers’ – Scots pine, Douglas fir and hybrid larch – and native broadleaves – alder, birch and oak. Creamer also planted species that encourage flora and fauna diversity such as mountain ash and crab apple.

A former dairy farmer, he now has 30 sucklers but conventional farming was becoming almost impossible, especially in wet areas close to the Ballinamore-Ballyconnell Canal.

“Some of my farm was reclaimed over the years, but the expense to drain it today – at €4,000/acre – is too great so I decided to plant 24 acres of the 130-acre farm,” he said.

Barber explains the rationale behind the species selection. Species classed as red deal such as larch, Douglas fir and Scots pine – Ireland’s only native productive softwood – “provide premium grade timber but over a rotation of 60 to 70 years before reaching maturity,” he says. These produce quality timber which has a high added value market if well managed.

Shutting the gate is not an option when managing diverse species, especially for broadleaves, which require continuous management and maintenance.

“For example, this means thinning little and often,” according to Barber, which suits Creamer’s hands-on approach.

The plantation is now at year eight, so they both discuss the possibility of transitioning to continuous cover forestry (CCF). They agree that a cleafelling will never take place, so CCF is likely to be an attractive silvicultural option. There is also generous funding in the current forestry programme for growers who wish to avail of this system.