Mr. Michael Spellman:

We set up a group to address climate change and it made a number of recommendations, one of which was agroforestry. In the first instance, we recommended the removal of the replanting obligation in standard afforestation as it acts as a significant barrier and prevents farmers from converting agricultural land into forestry. In addition, we recommended, in order to assist with afforestation targets, that livestock farmers would welcome a worthwhile agroforestry initiative using native broadleaf trees to increase forestry cover, provide shelter belts, offset emissions and increase biodiversity. Certainly, it is something that would get a positive response. I understand what was said about dairy farmers not putting large areas of their farms into forestry and how a couple of acres on every farm might be preferable. Some of our co-ops have reached out in a small way to their members by supplying them with trees to plant in small coppices on their farms. We could extend that, thus partially addressing what is needed in terms of afforestation.