Shane McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the House for the opportunity to give an update and to debate this important matter. Chalara fraxinea poses a very real threat to ash trees throughout the island of Ireland and indeed to those forest industries which rely on that species for their business. With 3% of the national forest estate under ash and over 10% of all new planting made up of this species, it is vital that action is taken swiftly and decisively to reduce this threat. Now that an outbreak of the disease has been confirmed I wish to reassure the House that the Department is doing everything it possibly can to protect one of our most important native species and such an important component in the Irish landscape.

Before I begin I will to set out the main points of my statement. I will give a general overview of forestry in Ireland in terms of the important role the planting, management and timber processing sectors play within the economy. I will also refer to ash itself and the important place this tree species occupies both in the Irish landscape and its importance as a raw material for hurley manufacture. I will then take the opportunity to update the House on the recent occurrence of Chalara fraxinea, the steps being taken to stop the spread of this disease and the legal measures introduced to reduce the risk of further infection. Finally, I will make a statement on the future of ash in Ireland in terms of securing self sufficiency in planting material and in ash wood production.

Forest cover has grown significantly since the introduction of grant aid support for private afforestation in 1982. Total forest cover during that period has increased from 400,000 hectares to 745,000 hectares, which is just under 11% of the total land area. The ownership and species composition of the national estate has also changed in the past number of years. In 1982, 75% of Ireland's forests were in public ownership. This figure now stands at just over half or 53%. Broadleaf cover has also increased during that period to comprise over a quarter of the national estate, 20,000 hectares of which is ash.

The forestry and forest products sectors are important contributors to the economy. The sectors employ over 12,000 people, generating some ¤2.2 billion in output per annum. The timber industry, which includes sawmills and panel board manufacturers, is also an important exporter of Irish manufactured goods, exporting 82% of its total output in 2010. In terms of output, hurley making is worth an estimated ¤5 million per annum to the economy. For overall supply, it is estimated that 2,100 cu. m. of ash wood is required for hurley making per annum. This equates to approximately 360,000 hurleys. Coillte, the State forestry board, supplies roughly 400 cu. m. of this material while the private sector provides 100 cu. m. The remaining 1,600 cu. m. is imported.

There are about 65 species of ash, of which only one is native to Ireland, the common ash, Fraxinus excelsior. It is mostly found in lowlands and is one of the common hedgerow trees in the country. Ash is a strong, flexible timber which makes it an ideal material for the manufacture of hurleys. Hurleys themselves are manufactured from the bottom 1.5 metres or so of the tree. It is also an ideal raw material for use in furniture and tool handles. In recent years there has been significant demand for ash firewood as it has a low natural moisture content and generally burns well without drying. Early thinnings of small diameter logs are very suited to the firewood market.

The planting of ash is supported by the Department under the afforestation scheme and the native woodlands scheme. The establishment grant available is up to ¤4,700 per hectare and an annual premium is also available each year for 20 years at a rate of ¤481 per hectare for both these schemes.

A separate grant of ¤750 per hectare is available for thinning and tending of young ash forests. Work under the support scheme includes thinning out of malformed and a proportion of other trees to promote growth in fewer, better quality trees.

I would like to update the House on the latest developments regarding the occurrence of ash dieback. The disease is a fungal pathogen and is a relatively new disease of ash, which was first named in 2006. It has spread rapidly across much of Europe, with the majority of European countries where ash is present reporting dieback. The exact form of the Chalaracausal organism has only been identified as recently as 2010. Common ash is susceptible to Chalara fraxinea, as are a number of other species of ash. Other tree species are not susceptible. The disease can affect trees of any age and in any setting and can be fatal, particularly for young trees. The wide range of symptoms associated with ash dieback includes necrotic lesions and cankers along the bark or branches or main stem, foliage wilt, foliage discolouration, and dieback of shoots, twigs or main stem resulting in crown dieback. The disease is known only in Europe, where it has been extremely destructive in many countries. Britain has recorded over 100 outbreak sites, mainly of mature trees in the wider environment.

Ash plants imported from countries where the disease is known to occur represent the most likely source of infection in Ireland. Wood is currently scientifically considered to be a lower risk pathway. Approximately 200,000 ash plants and approximately 1,600 cu. m of round wood ash for hurley manufacture are imported per annum. Firewood data are not broken down on a species-by-species basis although we understand from monitoring of imports that significant quantities of ash firewood are being imported from eastern Europe.

With regard to the outbreak, the Department has been actively monitoring for occurrences of the disease since 2008 by carrying out site surveys to establish the status of Chalara fraxineain the country and by carrying out examinations of ash imports at ports, importers' premises, nurseries and planting sites. Since 2008, suspect samples have been sent for laboratory analysis but until recently all results were negative. Samples were also sent to a specialist laboratory in Austria. Last month, a suspect case was identified in County Leitrim which, following molecular testing, was confirmed on 12 October as the first known instance of the disease in Ireland. The site was established in 2009 and was planted using material from a consignment of saplings imported from continental Europe. Some 30,000 individual ash trees made up the consignment, which was used in 11 separate sites throughout the country. Ash trees planted on the 11 sites in question have been destroyed. This involved the destruction by cutting and burning of some 30,000 trees from the imported consignment and several thousand adjoining trees, which was carried out rapidly with the co-operation of forest owners and contractors. Results from laboratory analysis received last week on 5 November confirmed that, while most of this consignment had no symptoms, in four of the other sites planted with the material, the disease was present on a very small number of trees. These sites are in County Galway, two in County Tipperary and one in County Meath. This confirms the Department's use of a precautionary approach in destroying the entire consignment at 11 sites was correct. One of the 11 sites is in County Monaghan and some typical chalara symptoms were noted but the results are inconclusive.

Fungicides are sometimes used in a forest nursery setting to prevent fungal infection but have little application in large scale forestry in controlling diseases. Once the occurrence of Chalara fraxineawas confirmed, I met representatives of forest nurseries and forestry contractors to inform them of the situation and seek their views. During the meeting, support was given to my call for a voluntary moratorium on the import of planting material from the Continent for the planting season. In recent years, 90% of the almost 2 million ash plants required for the afforestation programme originates from Irish seed raised in nurseries in Ireland. I arranged similar meetings with the hurley manufacturing sector and explained the type of measures necessary. Following the meeting, the Irish Guild of Ash Hurley Makers called on its members to take voluntary measures to reduce the risk of the disease coming to Ireland in advance of legal measures being introduced. I also met the GAA and Coillte to brief them on the situation. Coillte has committed to bringing forward supply of ash to alleviate any issues in the next few months.

I introduced legal measures on 26 October to prohibit the importation into Ireland of plant material from ash dieback infected areas. The measures make it an offence to import ash plants and seed from any country known to have the disease. Before the legislation was introduced, departmental officials notified the European Commission and the other member states of the first finding of ash dieback in Ireland, the actions taken to destroy the material and our intention to take emergency measures under the EU plant health directive to prevent the further introduction of the disease. As the island of Ireland has a harmonised plant health status under the directive, the legal measures were introduced in conjunction with similar measures taken by the Northern Ireland authorities to prevent any further introduction of the disease. Great Britain also brought in similar measures.

On 6 November the Department introduced legislation to limit the movement of ash wood. While plants are a higher risk pathway, scientific advice is that the movement of ash timber is also a possible pathway of infection. In drafting the legislation, I consulted widely with the hurley sector, conscious of the trade in ash wood for hurley manufacture. The legislation I approved is strong, robust legislation that ensures that ash wood comes from areas known to be free of the disease or that it has been treated in such a way that the threat of the disease is removed.

Before introducing the legislation, I met the Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development in Northern Ireland, Michelle O'Neill, MLA. With both sets of officials, we agreed the precise requirements in order to ensure a harmonised all-island approach to managing the disease. The legislation, which was signed into law last week, will allow ash wood movement into Ireland as follows: if it is accompanied by a plant passport or an official statement that it comes from an area known to be free of the disease; if it is free of outer round surface, including bark, and has water moisture content of less than 20%; if it is fully squared off; or if it has been kiln-dried below 20% moisture. Many manufacturers are already importing hurleys that meet the requirements and can continue to do so. Others who, for example, import ash butts from areas where the disease is present need to change their supply arrangements to comply with the new legislation. In order to help alleviate any potential supply problems, I have been in contact with Coillte, which has agreed to bring forward harvesting of ash. As a further precaution, the movement of plants within the country is subject to plant passport requirements.

We are aware of the possibility that other consignments of infected material could have made their way into the country and we are currently carrying out an extensive survey of forests planted with imported ash throughout the country. Specific training for the winter symptoms of ash dieback has been provided to district forestry Inspectors and horticultural staff. Department inspectors are also surveying for the disease in garden centres, nurseries and landscape plantings. Our website provides details of the disease and contact phone numbers and an e-mail address for those who believe they may have ash with the disease. My Department and Teagasc have developed a poster on the disease and will circulate posters among Teagasc, Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Coillte and National Parks and Wildlife Service offices and other private sector offices in the country, aimed at informing people of the symptoms of the disease.

My Department supports the aim of achieving self-sustainability in reproductive material for all species, not just ash. Nursery owners are encouraged to use home collected seed from registered seed stands. However, we must be mindful of the real risk of this disease becoming established in Ireland and start looking at developing breeding programmes for Chalara fraxinearesistant Irish ash trees. Currently, we simply do not know what level of resistance Irish ash will have to the disease. Experience from countries with the disease suggests there is some natural resistance in some ash trees and, therefore, there is the potential for breeding programmes to improve species resistance. We must think ahead and future proof ash plantations from the disease.

Research is an important strand of the Department's policy, not just in achieving self-sufficiency in this area but for improving the genetic quality of the planting stock. A gene conservation strategy for ash is already in place. Support is provided through my Department under the COFORD programme for studies on broadleaf tree improvement. Work is being undertaken principally in University College Dublin, in close collaboration with Coillte and Teagasc, with the aim of improving the future quality and productivity of Irish trees. The Department is also represented on FRAXBACK, which is a European Cooperation in Science and Technology, COST, action programme for research on the Chalara fraxineadisease.

With regard to the future supply of hurley ash, the total supply of raw material to meet the demand of hurley makers is 2,100 cu. m per annum, of which well over 70% is imported. It is unlikely the supply deficit will change in the short term as significant increases in locally produced ash wood are not expected for a number of years.

While the 20,000 hectares of ash is more than sufficient for a sustainable long-term supply of ash wood, most of this material is less than 20 years old and is not ready to harvest for hurley production. Based on the age profile of ash planted and maximising recovery from thinnings, self-sufficiency in ash wood is not projected until around 2020. The importation of ash will, therefore, be a feature of the hurley industry for a number of years to come. This makes it all the more important to have the support of hurley makers in terms of sourcing raw materials which is in compliance with the new legislation.

This disease has presented a number of challenges which we have dealt with head on. We have taken appropriate decisions which are in line with the latest scientific information available to us. Infected sites were cleared without delay, legislation has been agreed on plants and wood with Northern Ireland, the nursery trade and the hurley manufacturers have been brought with us and we have stepped up our surveillance operations. This disease will continue to bring challenges and I will endeavour to meet each one as they present themselves. I will continue to take the best advice I can, taking whatever action needs to be taken.

In the last hour we had a meeting with hurley makers, foresters, nurseries and other interested parties. We are moving forward. We had a very good discussion and much was learned from the meeting. We will continue to fight this disease but it will not be easy.

I compliment the staff of my Department and everyone in the industry. There is no disagreement and no one is talking about money. It is simply a matter of getting rid of the problem and moving forward. We have a long six months ahead of us, but we intend to meet the problem head on.

I thank the Seanad for this opportunity to speak on the matter.