Forestry central to Ireland’s climate goals

“The emphasis on forestry as a major land use is set to become even more attractive following the adoption of the Paris Agreement set out in the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference,” maintains Daragh Little, Veon Ltd.

“Under the agreement, forestry is recognised as an absorber of carbon, potentially offsetting carbon emissions produced by the agricultural sector, which generates a third of Ireland’s greenhouse gases. In addition, the use of wood as fuel or construction material replaces more carbon-intensive products derived from fossil fuels.”

He said that farmers and non-farmers are eligible for both establishment grants and annual premium payments so this could revitalise the afforestation programme. “We in Veon look forward to an increased planting programme for the remainder of the Forestry Programme 2014 – 2020,” he said. “Some €113.8m will be made available under the Forestry Programme in 2016 to support the planting of approximately 7,000ha of new forests.”