The forestry programme that is emerging from the mid-term review (MTR) illustrates the complexity of the sector as it tries to meet a number of challenges set out in 11 measures.

These include native woodland conservation, knowledge transfer (KT), forest technology, forest management plans (FMPs), certification and woodland improvement, but the programme is invariably judged on its performance in meeting afforestation and wood mobilisation targets.

Various reports, including FoodWise 2025, acknowledge the centrality of afforestation in the overall forestry programme. It is the key link in the forestry chain, as it affects the long-term viability of the sector including import substitution, employment, timber processing and climate change.

Shifts in land-use options, leading to an increase or decrease in interest in forestry, can be expected as farmers compare competing land uses and state/EU supports, but the recent fall-off in interest despite attractive tax-free premium payments and record timber prices has lasted longer than any past downturn.

Forestry companies and consultants, along with organisations such as the IFA, believe that the fall-off is primarily the result of a regulatory approach that makes it extremely difficult to buy into forestry.

They accept that the planning process will slow down approvals, as will referrals to other agencies such as the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

However, they maintain that once the farmer makes a decision to plant, approval should be granted within two to three months, not after six months or over a year as some foresters and farmers have experienced.

Assessment process

Currently, most applications are passed to the Department’s ecologists and archaeologists for assessment. These applications can be addressed by the Forestry Division by employing sufficient numbers of ecologists and archaeologists to process applications.

The Department has recruited one archaeologist, with one further appointment due shortly.

Appointments such as these take time, so an interim solution in speeding up applications through the ecologist’s office would be the appointment of a panel of independent ecologists to assess afforestation submissions, including sites that have been approved by ecologists working for the applicants.

Afforestation projects that receive approval under the current strenuous assessment should automatically be accepted on the grounds that they will eventually produce wood and non-wood benefits.

Therefore, it may be time to present an FMP for the first 15 years that includes maintenance, roading, tending/thinning, pruning and other operations that would remove the necessity for future costly applications, especially for forest roading and felling licences, apart from clearfelling.

In other words, once an afforestation programme satisfies all the silvicultural and regulatory criteria, including the production of an FMP and possibly forest certification, it should be allowed to maximise its wood and non-wood benefits throughout the forest cycle without barriers being placed on its wood and non-wood potential.

This would allow the Department, forest owners, forestry companies and forestry consultants to concentrate their resources on establishing a viable afforestation programme.

Knowledge transfer groups up and running

Since the approval of 52 new knowledge transfer groups (KTGs), forest owners – mainly farmers – are being invited to participate in the groups which are being established nationwide. We contacted representatives of forest owner groups, forestry companies and forestry consultants for their views.

Forest owner groups

The Limerick & Tipperary Woodland Owners Ltd (LTWO) is one of the forestry groups approved to operate KTGs.

“We have received approval for three KTGs to be facilitated by a qualified forester,” said LTWO chair Colum Walsh.

“Each KTG will have a maximum of 20 participants. There are some mandatory topics to be discussed, but we will also include suggestions from members.”

He said that one of the key benefits LTWO learned from last year’s pilot scheme was the realisation by forest owners that they can learn from each other.

“For example, when selling timber, pitfalls can be easily avoided when they are highlighted in advance. It is not necessary to pay high commissions and fees in order to get the best return.”

Contact admin@limerickandtipperarywoodlandowners.ie for further information.

The North East Forestry Group (NEFG) is one of the more progressive producer groups in the country.

Already, 12 of the NEFG’s 45 members in the Louth/Meath area have achieved FSC forest certification, which is a first for a private forestry group.

“The NEFG is pleased to announce a new KTG will be held this autumn, where experienced forest owners will share their hard-earned knowledge with newer entrants to forestry,” said NEFG chair John Sherlock.

“Each forest owner who attends will receive €70 per meeting for a total of seven meetings, funded by the Forest Service.”

Those wishing to join the NEFG should email info@sherlock.ie.

Forestry companies

“We are delighted to be chosen by the Forest Service as part of its KTG initiative for forestry,” said Conor Daly (inset) of The Forestry Company (info@theforestrycompany.ie).

“This is a fabulous opportunity for forest owners and industry to increase both their understanding of forestry and forestry-related issues in Ireland,” he said.

“A lot of landowners in the past would have planted and may not have engaged fully in the forestry process. We see this as a great opportunity for them to find out what they have inside their forest gates and put a value on it. We are launching our KTG programme nationally and look forward to talking to the forestry community and the Department as the scheme beds down.”

Forestry consultants

“The launch of the KTGs as promised in the mid-term review is a very much welcome development by me and my colleagues in the Association of Irish Forestry Consultants (AIFC)” said forestry consultant Paul Finnegan (paulfinnegan@live.ie).

“The KTGs seek to bridge the knowledge gap that exists among very many forest owners, as, uniquely, almost every forestry task they undertake is a first for them.”

He said that owners sold their plantations in the past due to a perceived lack of support available to manage their plantations.

“We would see the KTGs as an initiative for owners to hold on to their forest, as well as to encourage active management of it,” he said.

“This should help to retain the forestry benefits in rural areas, which is what forestry as a rural development initiative was originally intended.”

All maintained that it was vital that the scheme is allowed to continue into the future and welcomed Minister Doyle’s commitment to support its expansion in 2019.