My job, as Minister of State with responsibility for forestry, is to back the facts, back the opportunities and make sure farmers and landowners get the full support they deserve if they choose to establish the forests of the future.

Forestry has a significant role to play in the future of our country, with nearly 9,500 employed in the industry nationally and the sector contributing €2bn to the economy.

As minister, I see it as one of my biggest jobs to make sure that the positive story of forestry is heard loud and clear. Too often, the loudest voices are those who are negative, ill-informed or stuck in the past.

My job is to back the facts, back the opportunities and make sure farmers and landowners get the full support they deserve, if they choose to plant.

The Forestry Programme 2023-2027 is the biggest in the history of the State. It provides an unprecedented number of schemes to encourage the planting of trees. Each scheme includes generous financial incentives and planting options designed to increase farm income, reduce emissions and support biodiversity objectives.

Premiums

The programme includes: an increase in forestry premiums of between 46% and 66%; 20 years of premium payments for farmers and 15 years for non-farmers; annual premiums ranging from €746 for commercially productive forests to €1,142 for native forests for every hectare planted; and the Native Tree Area Scheme, which supports the creation of small-scale native forests without an afforestation licence, providing premium payments more than €22,000 over 10 years.

The overall aim of the Forest Programme is to increase forest cover, while also delivering ecosystem services with environmental and climate benefits.

This is guided by a target of 8,000ha of new forests per year which is outlined in Ireland’s Climate Action Plan. With over 1,900ha planted this year, we are on target to hit 3,000ha and are working hard to continue to build on this success.

Planting

In addition, there are currently nearly 4,500ha of new forests licensed and available for planting.

This has been achieved in the context of unprecedented challenges to the sector. Storm Éowyn, which happened in January of this year, resulted in an area of forest normally felled over a two and a half year period being blown down overnight.

Our latest damage assessment maps show that over 26,000ha of forests were windblown, with 11,600ha impacted in private forestry. Immediately following the storm, I established a windblow taskforce to provide practical, timely solutions to forest owners affected by the storms.

To date, over 65% of storm-damaged forests already have a felling licence, and an additional 11% have applications in the system that are currently prioritised.

I know forest owners are waiting for clear support in dealing with the aftermath of the storm. I want to say to them directly, we hope to have news on a reconstitution scheme very shortly. I know how vital that support will be for the sector and I am determined to see it delivered.

Power outages

The storm was also associated with several serious power outages. In that context, my department has engaged with the ESB on a forestry working group, and to ensure that we are prepared for future similar events we have developed the ESB Networks Winter 2025 Resilience Plan.

Further to the challenges faced by the storms, my Department has continued to respond to the legacy of the ash dieback disease and the supports put in place for forest owners affected by the disease are working.

Since 2013, payment for almost 4,000ha under the Ash Dieback Reconstitution Schemes have been made and over €21m has been paid out across both the Ash Dieback Reconstitution Schemes and the Climate Action Performance Payment.

In addition, I remain committed to the continuous improvement of the forest programme and the policies, strategies, and schemes that deliver it.

A mid-term review of the current programme is being undertaken in 2025, capturing the views of the main stakeholders on priority actions and to examine any potential that exists for changing schemes and improving their performance.

Timber

The forestry programme is, of course, reliant on a vibrant industry. Sawmills can only sell timber which is certified to an internationally recognised standard (usually FSC and PEFC), where at least 70% of the batch meets the certification standard.

There is an allowance that the remaining 30% can be from “controlled wood” which is not certified. The entire Coillte estate (49% of the national forest estate) is dual certified to both standards. To ensure that privately grown roundwood in Ireland is certified to international standard I recently established the National Group Forest Certification Board.

To promote the use of wood as a sustainable raw material, my Department established the Timber in Construction Steering Group involving over 60 members across a wide range of stakeholders.

So far, the group has developed six studies in relation to the use of timber in construction, as well as supporting a free online Continuous Professional Development (CPD) series, covering the benefits of designing and building with timber.

We know that there are significant challenges to overcome when it comes to persuading private landowners to engage in a forestry activity that is new to them.

I believe that the financial argument for forestry stacks up, but there are issues of culture and identity and the inevitable human inertia when you are asking people to take on a new and unfamiliar enterprise.

Forestry programme

To address these challenges my Department continues to build on the Communications Plan by engaging with foresters, farmers, State Agencies, and other stakeholders to ensure anyone with a potential interest in forestry is actively supported.

So, there really is something to suit everyone in this Forestry Programme, and the best time to apply is now. I would invite anyone with a livestock or other farm enterprise to look at the potential for identifying a parcel of their land for forestry and supplementing their farm income. Forestry will not in any way compromise their other farming activities, rather it can complement it. And I would invite all of those interested in developing the sector, to work with my Department and myself to deliver this positive message about forestry.

I am certain that if we work constructively together, the forestry sector has a bright future.