Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy. The provision is to enable us to put together a scheme, on which we would consult and engage with all interested stakeholders. We simply would not have the capacity to put a scheme together now to encourage the small-scale planting of native woodland and trees. I do not see how anyone could object to the proposal. It is a sensible and logical measure. It is about making it easier to plant forests, within reason, at a small scale. It is something we have been considering and assessing. There is a lot of work ongoing within the Department through Project Woodland and the various work streams to try to streamline the regulation and forestry-licensing processes as much as possible and examine what is happening internationally. There is a lot of work ongoing in that regard.

This is one small measure that we believe could be helpful. We felt we would like to make the most of the opportunity that exists and to give people who want to engage in the type of afforestation in question the opportunity to do so. Currently, the bottom line is that if the area in question is more than 0.1 ha, a licence must be applied for. This is something we believe we can change. It is entirely sensible to change it to allow people to plant more than 0.1 ha.

There has to be a first time for everybody to hear about the measure. Over the past few days, we engaged with the committee and informed members that we would like to proceed using this legislation. We felt that proceeding in this way, with the co-operation of the members, would be a practical approach. It just makes sense to move it on. Otherwise, we would have to start with an entirely new Bill, which would understandably take longer. It is procedurally possible to proceed as we are doing, so it is really sensible to do so. I appreciate the unanimous decision made when we spent an hour in the Dáil seeking authorisation to do this. We are now able to discuss the matter by way of a Committee Stage amendment. It is an efficient use of all our time. Importantly, it is also efficient in the sense that we can develop a scheme, promptly after the passage of the legislation, that gives people the capacity to engage in afforestation and increase the proportion of native trees.

This is not a cosmetic exercise; it could make a real difference and be economically beneficial to farmers. Most farmers, when they examine their landholding, will see spots where they could incorporate native woodland to their benefit and that of the environment around them. The mechanism is about empowering them to do that. It was very dismissive of whomever the Deputy was communicating to describe it as landscaping. There is no doubt whatsoever that the scheme would be beneficial to the landscape. It would empower farmers to make use of their land in a way that would be beneficial to the environment and biodiversity. Allowing them to avail of the scheme would also be financially beneficial.

The amendment facilitates the planting of riparian woodland along waterways. This can have a positive impact, in numerous instances, on water quality because it provides a natural break.

We will engage further from this point on. The matter will be considered further on Report Stage by the members, and it will also be considered in the Seanad. I hope that, because we are proceeding in the way we are doing, we will see what we propose alongside the enacted legislation very early in the next Dáil term. We can then get on with putting the scheme into place.