Written answers
Thursday, 30 July 2020
Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine
Forestry Sector
Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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925. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of forestry licence applications received by his Department in each month in 2018, 2019 and to date in 2020; the corresponding figure for the number of licences approved, appealed, granted and refused on appeal, respectively; the number on hand in each category; the specific measures being taken to expedite the process in the interests of all parties; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20050/20]
Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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I am acutely aware that current delays in issuing licences has led to difficulties for some in the sector.My Department is intensively engaging with all relevant stakeholders on these issues. The current licensing difficulties are as a result of the changes made to internal Appropriate Assessment Procedures (AAP). These were introduced in response to important Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) decisions and their subsequent interpretation by the Forestry Appeals Committee (FAC) and others. These findings meant that in order to grant licences which fully meet environmental requirements, fundamental changes to the licensing system were unavoidable. All licence applications are subject to a statutory public notification system.
I accept the current changes to procedures are very significant and they have been challenging to implement such is the scope and breadth of them, which has unfortunately meant that there have been delays in issuing licences. It has taken substantial resources and effort to introduce a robust and workable system, which meets the legislative requirements, and I believe we now have that in place. a majority of my Department's licensing decisions are being confirmed at the Forestry Appeals Committee which gives confidence in these revised procedures.
My Department has a detailed project plan in place for dealing with the current backlog and new applications, which includes significant investment in extra resources required to deliver the plan. These resources are a combination of additional ecologists, forestry inspectors and administrative staff where required.
The project plan is a targeted, process-driven approach which prioritise files in a manner which will result in an increased number of licences being issued in the short-term and will deliver a return to expected timelines in the longer term. Applicants who have or are prepared to submit a Natura Impact Statement, where appropriate, will be prioritised.
A Project Management Board, with a dedicated Project Manager, will oversee and monitor delivery. There will be a continuous review of the process, in order to effect efficiencies. A communication plan to keep stakeholders fully and regularly informed of progress, with a dedicated central resource to deal with queries, is a key element of the project. While much of the success of the project plan lies with my Department, stakeholders also need to engage with it. This will require a commitment from forestry companies to submit only applications which have a realistic chance of being planted, to ensure all applications are of the required standard and quality, and to submit NISs in accordance with the guidance provided.
In terms of improvements to the current approval system, a comprehensive review which involved extensive stakeholder consultation, was conducted by Mr. Jim Mackinnon, CBE, and his recommendations are outlined in the Mackinnon Report. There is a commitment under the Programme for Government to implement the Mackinnon Report, and to review the forestry appeals process to ensure that it is aligned with other comparable appeals processes. I am considering how best this might be achieved and expect to be announcing some changes in this regard in the coming weeks.
The Forestry Appeals Committee (FAC) is operationally independent of my Department. Additional resources have been assigned to the FAC over past months, including additional administrative resources and personnel with planning expertise, to assist with administering appeals. Resource needs will continue to be monitored.
I am more than aware that the current situation is challenging, but it is a temporary disruption which, when resolved, will make for a better, more sustainable and fit-for-purpose forestry licensing system for many years to come.
Regarding forestry licence statistics, my Department publishes a range of data on its website. The tables below show the number of applications for afforestation, forest road and tree felling licences received and decided by month in 2018, 2019 and to the end of June 2020.
Afforestation applications received
- | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
---|---|---|---|
Jan | 149 | 96 | 107 |
Feb | 102 | 92 | 90 |
Mar | 79 | 98 | 61 |
Apr | 74 | 67 | 74 |
May | 83 | 56 | 68 |
Jun | 75 | 72 | 84 |
Jul | 93 | 85 | |
Aug | 83 | 79 | |
Sep | 84 | 90 | |
Oct | 104 | 103 | |
Nov | 89 | 96 | |
Dec | 59 | 71 |
Afforestation applications decided
- | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
---|---|---|---|
Jan | 84 | 63 | 41 |
Feb | 104 | 78 | 58 |
Mar | 109 | 69 | 56 |
Apr | 120 | 87 | 69 |
May | 67 | 57 | 33 |
Jun | 47 | 32 | 22 |
Jul | 31 | 30 | |
Aug | 35 | 60 | |
Sep | 71 | 22 | |
Oct | 78 | 42 | |
Nov | 55 | 26 | |
Dec | 54 | 22 |
Forest Road Applications Received
- | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
---|---|---|---|
Jan | 42 | 65 | 60 |
Feb | 41 | 57 | 57 |
Mar | 63 | 71 | 35 |
Apr | 61 | 57 | 62 |
May | 66 | 77 | 48 |
Jun | 58 | 43 | 58 |
Jul | 65 | 51 | |
Aug | 61 | 63 | |
Sep | 66 | 57 | |
Oct | 99 | 52 | |
Nov | 71 | 53 | |
Dec | 35 | 47 |
Forest Road Applications Decided
- | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
---|---|---|---|
Jan | 35 | 101 | 19 |
Feb | 31 | 59 | 32 |
Mar | 28 | 39 | 40 |
Apr | 21 | 51 | 38 |
May | 36 | 48 | 37 |
Jun | 37 | 47 | 24 |
Jul | 26 | 48 | |
Aug | 60 | 46 | |
Sep | 38 | 25 | |
Oct | 62 | 24 | |
Nov | 53 | 22 | |
Dec | 34 | 32 |
Felling Licence Applications Received
- | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
---|---|---|---|
Jan | 205 | 187 | 95 |
Feb | 123 | 198 | 138 |
Mar | 180 | 948 | 106 |
Apr | 164 | 139 | 104 |
May | 157 | 109 | 109 |
Jun | 1156 | 80 | 14 |
Jul | 946 | 170 | 0 |
Aug | 158 | 121 | 0 |
Sep | 343 | 104 | 0 |
Oct | 123 | 359 | 0 |
Nov | 140 | 216 | 0 |
Dec | 2274 | 669 | 0 |
Felling Licences Decided
- | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
---|---|---|---|
Jan | 232 | 513 | 81 |
Feb | 106 | 1079 | 177 |
Mar | 203 | 664 | 180 |
Apr | 130 | 568 | 127 |
May | 212 | 124 | 149 |
Jun | 149 | 272 | 85 |
Jul | 83 | 356 | 0 |
Aug | 704 | 124 | 0 |
Sep | 738 | 156 | 0 |
Oct | 579 | 73 | 0 |
Nov | 386 | 134 | 0 |
Dec | 81 | 117 | 0 |
The table below shows the number of licences appealed to the Forestry Appeals Committee in each of the years 2018, 2019 and 2020 (to 24thJuly) and the number of licences currently awaiting decision.
- | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
---|---|---|---|---|
Number of licences appealed | 22 | 150 | 302 | 303 |
Number of licences awaiting decision | 1 | 5 | 108 | 274 |
The table below shows the number of licence decisions upheld, varied or cancelled by the FAC in the same years.
- | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | Totals |
---|---|---|---|---|
Decision upheld | 42 | 88 | 2 | 139 |
Decision varied | 20 | 6 | 0 | 30 |
Decision cancelled | 38 | 33 | 0 | 72 |
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