A study examining the current state of environmental regulation of forestry in Co Leitrim has been published by the Department of Agriculture.
The report, which is available here, was commissioned by Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture Andrew Doyle in February 2019 following intense campaigning by residents of the county against the level of planting.
The study, led by UCD’s Dr Áine Ní Dhubháin in conjunction with the Bureau for Economic Theory and Applications, INRA, France, was aimed at assessing the social and economic impacts of forestry in the county.
The latest figures show the percentage of forestry cover in Co Leitrim is 18.9%, the highest cover in any county, and substantially higher than the national level of 11%.
Of that forest area, 61.3% is sitka spruce.
Native species account for 30.7% of Leitrim’s forest area.
Findings
A survey of forestry owners in Leitrim carried out by the researchers found:
Interviews
Researchers also held interviews with 23 people to capture a range of opinions on forestry in the county.
The issues that emerged from the interviews were later grouped into themes.
The major themes include those relating to forestry as a land use, forestry’s role in the community, and forest policy.
A strong divergence of opinion was noted for most of the themes.
Some of the findings from the result were:
Coming work
Minister Doyle, on receiving the report, said it was extremely comprehensive and he encouraged all stakeholders to take the time to study the report in detail.
He thanked Dr Ní Dhubháin for her work and said the Department would consider the report carefully over the coming weeks.
“The study will improve our understanding of the impacts of forestry in rural communities and in this regard will form an important part of the final review of the Forestry Programme 2014 -2020.”
Surge in non-farmer forestry in Roscommon and Cavan