Tom Hayes (Tipperary South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am pleased to present the Forestry Bill 2013 to this House and look forward to Members' constructive contributions on its provisions.

Since the beginning of its passage through the legislative process, the Bill has been the subject of much discussion with stakeholders and Oireachtas Members. I am pleased to announce that as a consequence of these consultations I propose to introduce a number of amendments to the Bill on Committee and Report Stages, which amendments I believe go a considerable way towards addressing the concerns expressed to me by a range of stakeholder interests. I believe that a good balance has now been struck in the Bill that not only meets the needs of a flourishing industry but also serves the greater public good and protects the environment.

The purpose of this Bill is to reform and update the legislative framework for forestry. This will support the development of a modern forest sector which operates in accordance with the principles of good forest practice. The current regulatory regime, underpinned by the Forestry Act 1946 has been in place for almost 70 years. Considerable changes have occurred within the forestry sector during that time. There have also been many technological, scientific and regulatory developments in the intervening period. Key among these has been the recognition that forests are a multi-functional resource that provide significant economic, social and environmental benefits. As Minister with responsibility for forestry I must ensure that the governing legislation for forestry is flexible and facilitates rather than restricts the sustainable use and development of this important national and natural resource.

Before elaborating on the provisions of the Bill, it would be useful to put into context Irish forestry in terms of size and contribution to the economy of the country. By the early 1900s, forest cover in Ireland had been reduced to 1% of the land area of the country. This contributed to the need to regulate felling through the introduction of the Forestry Acts 1928 and 1946, which ensured that forest cover was maintained. The area of the national forest estate in Ireland is now over 730,000 hectares or almost 11% of the total land area. While this has expanded significantly since the early 1980s with the introduction of grant schemes aimed at encouraging private landowners, mainly farmers, to become involved in forestry, it is still relatively low compared to our EU counterparts given that almost 40% of total land in the EU is under forest cover.

More than 54% of the national forest estate is in public ownership, mainly through Coillte Teoranta, with the remaining 46% in private ownership. This contrasts with the position 20 years ago when 70% was in public ownership and only 30% was in private ownership. There are more than 19,000 private forest owners throughout Ireland, the majority of whom are farmers. Ireland's forest sector comprises a growing sector, a vibrant processing sector and a modern harvesting and transport sector, with total employment in the region of 12,000. These jobs are mainly in rural areas and make a significant contribution to the local economies in which they are based. Exports of wood products in 2012 were just over €300 million, with wood-energy and processing also expanding as forests enter the production phase. Ireland's forests are widely used by the public for amenity and recreation, with an estimated 18 million recreational visits to Irish forests each year. The number of visits continue to increase, making this area a huge part of our tourism resource.

Since my appointment as Minister of State with responsibility for forestry, I have visited forest plantations, nurseries and timber processing facilities to see first-hand the actual work involved. I have also met with a number of representative groups, including timber processors, forestry companies, forest owner groups - which is a new grouping established to protect the interests of the now many private forest owners - and environmental organisations. My door is open to all involved in this sector. During my travels around the country over the last 12 months I met with many people who are committed to this industry and who are interested in working with the forest service and my Department to build it into the future, thus creating a huge number of jobs across rural areas.

I will now address the main provisions of the Bill and give a general outline of its scope and how the proposed system of regulation will work in practice. Members will appreciate that many of the provisions are standard, technical or legal provisions and do not require any further clarification.

Part 1 contains a number of general provisions including the Short Title, rules governing the laying of documents before the Houses of the Oireachtas, service of documents and expenses of the Minister.

Section 2 contains the important definitions which determine the scope of the Bill. It is of necessity an extensive list that draws on many aspects of forest operations and practices.

Part 2 outlines in some detail the functions of the Minister, both general and specific. The general functions in section 5 include a range of promotional responsibilities relating to forestry, including afforestation, good forest practice that maintains the biological diversity of forests, the promotion of knowledge and awareness of forestry through education and training, and the development and marketing of a quality based processing sector. The Minister's general functions also include the regulation and monitoring of forest operations to ensure that forests are properly managed and protected from harmful pests, diseases and invasive species. The specific functions of the Minister are set down in section 6. These primary functions include the granting of licences for felling, afforestation, forest road works and approval of forest management plans, and the attaching of conditions to such licences and approvals. Regulation of forestry activities is essential both to avoid environmental damage and to maintain the existing forest estate so as to protect the investment by the State in the afforestation programme. An important feature of this section is the granting of powers to the Minister to give legislative effect to guidelines and standards covering a range of environmental considerations, from water quality to the protection of species such as the red squirrel and the freshwater pearl mussel.

Section 7 elaborates on the technical aspects of the Minister's powers relating to the granting of licences and approvals, including the setting of conditions, the extension of such licences and approvals and their suspension or revocation. Section 8 allows the Minister to appoint committees to assist and advise in the performance of his or her functions. Where advantageous, this may include the delegation to a committee of certain functions, subject to the Minister retaining overall responsibility and accountability. Issues concerning the confidentiality of the work of the committee and the responsibility of members are set down in section 9.

Section 10 enables the Minister to require forest owners to submit a forest management plan in support of applications for consented activities. Such plans would cover felling, including thinning, reforestation, forest road works and other forestry-related activities such as amenity and recreational use of forests. The forest management plan will also provide a mechanism whereby an application for a felling licence may be incorporated within the plan thus allowing for a flexible, responsive and timely system for dealing with activities such as thinning.

Part 3 provides for protection of the environment when any forestry activity is being planned. The licensing of forestry activities must have regard to the continued protection of the environment. There are consultation processes in place with a range of stakeholders, including the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Inland Fisheries Ireland, An Taisce, local authorities and the public. There are also guidelines on matters such as water quality, landscape, biodiversity, archaeology, and protected flora and fauna. Approximately 18% of the land area of Ireland is designated under European law as special areas of conservation or special protection areas. There are also additional national designations, such as natural heritage areas and national parks. Forest activities may be restricted in these designated areas.

Section 11 requires the Minister to have regard to the social, economic and environmental functions of forestry; and to follow good forest practice and to take particular account of the potential impact of forestry activities on different habitats and species in forests. Activities occurring within designated areas or affecting protected species, or activities that have the potential to impact on such areas or species, must be assessed for any adverse impact. Where it is considered that the activity has the potential to adversely impact on the designated area or protected species, the Minister will require the completion of an assessment of the impact of the forestry activity on the habitat, plant life, birds or animals so affected. Such assessments could also include proposals to avoid, mitigate or ameliorate any potential impact and if acceptable, these would then allow the proposed activity to proceed in an appropriately controlled and measured fashion.

Sections 12 and 13 are technical provisions that place an onus on forest owners to notify the Minister if their forest is damaged or destroyed, and also give the Minister the power to require information from forest owners and wood processing businesses for statistical or investigative purposes. Section 14 is important in the context of forest protection. Both 2010 and 2011 were among the worst years on record for land and forest fires in Ireland with many forest fires being caused by the uncontrolled burning of vegetation which spread to nearby forests. The forest estate suffered over 3,000 hectares of damage during those two years. This provision allows the Minister to serve a notice on a landowner to remove vegetation from uncultivated land that is posing a threat to an adjoining forest or to authorise persons to enter the land and remove the vegetation.

Section 15 deals with the control of species such as grey squirrels and rabbits where they pose a threat to forests. It allows the Minister to serve a notice on a landowner requiring him or her to take specified action to protect neighbouring forests from damage. Where land is unoccupied, or the owner fails to comply with such notice, the Minister may authorise a person to enter the land and deal with the particular species.

Part 4 deals with felling licences. The current licence system operated under the Forestry Act 1946 is now considered cumbersome in the context of the needs of a modern forest sector and wider society. The Bill proposes to simplify the process by replacing the two existing licences with a single felling licence. There will no longer be a requirement for a person to lodge an application for a felling licence at the nearest Garda station. The licence will be valid for a period of up to ten years with the possibility of an extension for a further five years, that is, 15 years in all. When the Minister grants a licence, he or she may impose conditions, including whether or not the land should be replanted. One of the primary purposes of the afforestation programme is to maintain and increase the national forest area, and replanting will continue to be required in all but exceptional circumstances. Unlicensed felling will continue to be an offence with penalties, on summary conviction, of €200 for every tree removed and-or imprisonment for six months.

On conviction on indictment, penalties ranging to a maximum of €1 million may be imposed and-or imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years. These penalties are at the higher end of the scale reflecting the seriousness of the offence and the need for dissuasive measures to ensure that the forest estate is protected.

In response to submissions from industry sources, I introduced amendments on Committee and Report Stages in the Dáil and a new section 18 now provides for fixed timelines for the processing of felling licence applications. Many people wanted to know when their applications would arrive back on their desks.

Section 19 of the Bill provides for exemptions to the requirement for a felling licence. These include all trees within an urban area; trees that must be removed for public safety reasons or to prevent the spread of fire, pests or disease; and trees outside a forest that are within 10 m of a public road which the owner considers to be posing a danger to road users. An important exemption from the licensing requirement is that landowners will be able to remove trees on their own holdings for their own use, up to a limit of 15 m3 of wood in any period of 12 months, provided the trees are outside a forest and do not form part of a decorative avenue or ring of trees on the holding. Concern was expressed in a number of quarters about the need for the protection of larger established trees in hedgerows and individual old or veteran trees in the context of this provision. In response, I introduced an amendment on Report Stage that extends protection for such trees within the environs of national monuments or archaeological sites, trees within designated European sites and trees which are more than 150 years old. Notwithstanding the exemptions, the Bill in section 20 also enables the Minister to issue an order prohibiting the felling or removing of any tree, with penalties for those who do not comply.

Section 21 allows the Minister to notify the Property Registration Authority of the imposition of a replanting order on land where trees have been felled without a licence or in contravention of a condition of a licence so that these can be registered as a burden on the land until the replanting order has been complied with. This is to ensure that trees which have been illegally cut down are replaced and also to protect prospective purchasers of forestry land. Once the conditions of the licence or the order are satisfied, the Minister, on such notification by the owner, will inform the registering authority of the discharge of the burden or compliance with the conditions.

Part 5, section 22, sets out the requirements for licensing of afforestation and forest roadwork projects and aerial fertilisation of forests. This is a technical provision which expands on the application process. It empowers the Minister to impose conditions on the grant of licences, provides for the imposition of penalties where unlicensed development, or development that does not comply with the conditions of a licence, takes place and also provides for the making of regulations governing the issuing of licences.

Many of the provisions of the Bill impose obligations on owners and other parties engaged in forestry activities and the enforcement provisions in Part 6 are vital to ensure compliance with those requirements. Section 23 allows the Minister to appoint authorised officers to enforce the various statutory provisions. These officers are normally departmental forestry inspectors but members of An Garda Síochána are also authorised officers for the purposes of the Bill. The powers of authorised officers are listed in detail in section 24. They include the power of entry onto lands to inspect and remove, if necessary, any material considered a risk to trees and to remove records or other information relevant to the inspection or investigation.

Section 25 empowers the Minister to charge for licences and other services provided by the legislation. It is a matter of policy as to whether there should be charges for such services and its inclusion in the Bill should not be interpreted as a statement of intent at this point. During the consideration of this section in the Dáil, I introduced an amendment on Report Stage that provides for an element of parliamentary scrutiny of any proposal to impose charges.

One of the important tenets of sustainable forest management is the regeneration of forests following felling. The licensing system outlined in this Bill is built upon the premise that, save in exceptional circumstances, forests that are felled must be replanted. Where illegal felling has occurred, it is important, therefore, that the Minister has the power to impose an order on the offender compelling him or her to replant the area or an equivalent area within his or her ownership. Part 7, section 26, provides the Minister with such powers and also makes it an offence if the offender fails to comply with the order.

Part 8 of the Bill deals with offences and penalties and encompasses an extensive list of such offences in section 27. Offences range from submitting false or misleading information in support of an application for approval or a licence to failure to comply with notices or other conditions or requirements. Important provisions include causing irremediable damage to a tree and, as referred to already, intentional or reckless setting fire to trees.

The penalties in section 27 range from €200 for damaging or removing a tree to fines of up to €1,000,000 and-or five years' imprisonment for conviction on indictment of felling or removing trees without a licence. The penalties applicable, which are ranked according to the seriousness of the offence, are of necessity severe so as to act as a deterrent against wrongdoing or failure to comply with conditions set down in the legislation. Where the offence is committed by a body corporate, section 29 enables the Minister to prosecute both the body corporate and officers of the body corporate.

Part 9, section 30, enables the Minister to make regulations relating to the range of forestry activities, including afforestation, forest protection, forest roads, training and education. Importantly, the regulations also include provisions to prevent the entry into the State, or the control or extermination within the State, of insects, pests or invasive species that might threaten trees, an important provision having regard to the recent outbreak of ash dieback disease.

In Part 10, section 32, provision is included for payment of compensation in certain limited circumstances where applications for licences are refused.

Finally, the Bill includes an amendment to the Agriculture Appeals Act 2001 to extend its remit to a number of forestry activities and to provide for the establishment of a forestry appeals committee.

I thank Senators for their attention and I look forward to hearing their contributions to the debate. This is a really important area.

The potential for the forestry sector to deliver jobs and exports is underestimated. Many hectares of land across the country that are not viable for dairying or other agricultural uses could be considered for forestry. Many Governments have committed taxpayers’ money to progress the forestry industry but I believe there is still more potential for job creation in rural areas, as well as in tourism and forestry linkages. I have met many landowners who have invested in forestry because their lands were not viable for dairying. They got much information from Teagasc and the forestry service on how to switch over to forestry. It is a good story that can be built upon.