Mary Wallace (Meath East, Fianna Fail)

The amount of €7,604 referred to by the Deputy is probably the planting grant. If a person goes to plant a forest, the cost is covered. On top of this the person receives an annual premium of €573 per hectare and an additional €200 per hectare for FEPS.

I agree with the Deputy on growing forestry as it is important for people to maintain and thin them. If we do not do so, we will not have good timber at the end of the day. One of our chief promotional issues at the moment in encouraging farmers to go into forestry is to indicate they will get the 20-year premium, the planting grant at the beginning and income tax-free. We have brought in many schemes under the heading of thinning and maintenance, such as the high pruning of conifer scheme, which is important. There is also the shaping of broadleaves scheme and a forest road scheme, which helps to maintain forests.

There are two messages. The first is that the 20-year-old forest must be maintained and thinned, and wood energy must be reaped from it. We encourage farmers to do this. The second is that it is very worthwhile for farmers to consider forestry as a real option at this stage. Many REPS farmers are looking at it this year who would not have considered it before.

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