Mr. Brian Murphy:

I thank the committee for the opportunity to appear before it and to discuss the contribution that forestry and timber make to combating climate change. Forest Industries Ireland, FII, is only one year old. We want to increase knowledge and awareness about forestry and timber. We would love to better inform our fellow citizens about the industry, its prospects and challenges and its contributions to climate change.

I am the chief executive of Balcas Limited. We have two factories, in Enniskillen and Invergordon in Scotland. We process 1 million cu. m of sustainable forest output annually, from which we produce a range of wood products for construction, fencing and packaging. We generate all our own electricity and spill the same amount to the grid, which is enough electricity for all the homes in County Fermanagh. We also make wood pellets, and our heat fuel from the forests of Ireland and Scotland annually displaces 100 million l of oil from Ireland and Britain. We have no wood fibre waste.

I am also the chairman of FII, an all-island body constituted within IBEC. Our member companies cover the whole supply chain. There are nurseries that grow saplings, forestry consultants who work with farmers and landowners to plant and manage their forests and factories that convert the forest crop into construction timber, panel products, fencing materials, packaging and biofuel. For many decades, the State and our people have invested in increasing afforestation in Ireland. In return, our island now has an industry that provides 12,000 jobs throughout our rural communities. The economic contribution is approximately €2.3 billion per annum. Over the coming years, the private forests planted in the 1980s and 1990s will come to maturity and will deliver a major supply increase onto the market, which is a further opportunity for Ireland. Today, we work with more than 20,000 farmer-forest owners, most of whom have planted a portion of their land. They receive a steady and reliable income and it delivers a valuable crop when the forest matures. Farmers are invariably interested in the environmental contribution their forests make.

Ireland's forests produce timber at three times the rate of Scandinavia's and are a major carbon sink. Forestry in Ireland is already a large part of this island’s fight against climate change. Irish forests capture 3.6 million tonnes of CO2 yearly, while the total carbon store is more than 300 million tonnes. This is testament to the policies of successive Governments to plant trees and create and support a vibrant forest sector. Throughout the world, forests have been identified as the most scalable opportunity to absorb CO2. In Ireland, we have learned a great deal. We are increasing diversity and balance, are providing more leisure and recreational opportunities for our citizens and are increasing the provision of one of nature’s great renewable raw materials.

We should increasingly seek to use our own timber as a mass-market construction material. Wood can displace cement and steel in our built environment and is doing so today throughout the world. The world’s tallest timber building was completed in Norway this year, with 18 storeys of apartments. Wood is used to remodel, expand and extend the life of existing structures, maintaining the existing foundations. In Ireland, too, we should embrace the greater use of timber, which will require changes to our building regulations. The Government can take a lead by enabling the construction of more timber housing, and procuring new greener schools and civic buildings that use cross-laminated timber as the backbone of their structure. Ireland’s commitments to climate action are already supported by our growing forests. To continue this into the future, we must plant more and continue to improve forest management. We have done well to climb back from less than 1% forest cover 100 years ago to the 11% of today. Now is the time to redouble our efforts and build a coalition of farmers, foresters and policymakers to drive continued forest development.

Farmers are the foundation of future policy, and industry and the Government must rise to the challenge of rewarding them. The climate action plan produced by the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Deputy Bruton, has an annual target of 8,000 ha of new afforestation. We need to support our farmers and rural communities. We want them to feel encouraged to see forestry as a positive option on their farms, both for the sake of the environment and for a reliable family income. We all want to find ways to diversify the forest estate. Already, approximately 30% of the trees being planted are broadleaf. We want to increase the creation of native woodland and can do so in a way that will go hand in hand with the creation of conifer forests and will sustain the economic value they contribute. Currently, the greatest driver of broadleaf planting in Ireland is the planting of Sitka spruce.

Our sector calls for a renewed vision for forestry in Ireland, based on economic development, climate change goals, biodiversity and social values. We need all the stakeholders to come together and agree the way forward, rather than have different groups pulling in different directions. Forestry and timber can make a great positive impact on climate change. If we get it right, it will work for everyone and for once, the economic and environmental stories will work hand in hand.