Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for this topical question, which I will take on behalf of the Minister of State, Senator Hackett, who has responsibility for forestry. I appreciate this opportunity to also give an overview of the forestry licensing process.

While I am not in a position to comment on individual applications for which the licensing process is ongoing, my understanding is that the licence in question was submitted in autumn last year. The application has been published on the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine’s website, and is currently going through the assessment process.

Landowners must obtain a licence from the Department before planting a forest. This is to ensure that all forestry activity respects and protects the environment and that the right tree is planted in the right place. All forestry licence applications are assessed to establish whether they would have an impact on a European site designated under the birds and habitats directive. The Department will only approve a forestry application where it deems that there will be no adverse effect on the integrity of any such site. In addition, the views of prescribed bodies are sought when making licensing decisions, including, where appropriate, the relevant county council and An Taisce. Once a licence application is advertised on the Department’s website, all interested parties have 30 days to make a submission and these submissions are examined as part of the decision-making process. When a decision is made on a licence application, it is published on the Department's forestry licence viewer, which is an interactive portal for viewing all documents associated with licence applications. A licence may be appealed by either the applicant or an interested third party to the Forestry Appeals Committee.

Forestry is regulated to protect and enhance the multiple benefits trees bring to our environment, biodiversity and economy, and to ensure the sustainability of our forests. The licensing system ensures our forests conform with national and international agreements and comply with best forest practice. It is important to see all afforestation licence applications in the national context. The climate action plan has a target of 8,000 ha for afforestation.

The focus for this Government and for the forestry sector more widely is to increase afforestation rates and manage existing forests in order to ensure the targets outlined in the climate action plan are achieved. We have a budget of €1.3 billion behind the new forestry programme, and this funding commitment is a strong message of support from the Government for all types of tree planting. The new afforestation scheme for the 2023-27 period offers landowners a choice of 12 forest types which cover a broad range of planting options. It provides generous incentives to farmers, in particular, to re-engage with forestry. One of the requirements of the new forestry programme is that any productive forest planted now requires that 20% of the trees are broadleaf species. This will ensure that all new forests created are diverse and deliver lasting multiple benefits not just for climate change but also for biodiversity, wood production, economic development and quality of life.

The Government takes very seriously the need to make sure that all trees planted contribute to the shared national vision for trees and forests, while delivering public good for the benefit of all. I assure the Deputy that there is robust and comprehensive assessment. A public consultation process in place to ensure that all relevant information is taken into account before permission to plant a forest is granted.

See this speech in context