Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I raise an issue very pertinent to regional development and housebuilding, which is the forestry industry in the State. At the moment, 1,980 licences awaiting approval by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine from an ecology assessment point of view. At the current rate, it will take two years to clear the backlog, never mind dealing with new applications. The appropriate assessment screening threshold has changed from 3 km to 15 km, which accounts for more than 90% of the applications to be screened. We need a single, workable licence system for the forestry industry. Jobs and the supply chain for native timber are at risk. The price of materials for houses is going up, which is a very important issue, and there is scarcity as a result. We need immediate action on this. We need to see that the farmers who are planting trees know they can fell them. This needs to be taken up as a serious issue.

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