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

Before I speak on the amendments, I want to draw to the attention of the House to the fact that today is Tree Day, organised by the Tree Council of Ireland. It is appropriate that we are discussing the Forestry Bill. We should all mark this day in our own way. With the co-operation of the Department of Education and Skills, a thousand trees have been sent to various schools. Tomorrow I will visit my local school in County Tipperary and plant a tree. If anybody has a free hour tomorrow he or she should plant a tree in their own area. One thing I have learned about forestry is that people in the Oireachtas have a great interest in the environment, and trees are part of the environment. I invite everybody tomorrow, whether in his or her own back garden or in a school, to plant a tree to mark the occasion and, perhaps, to bring it to the attention of younger people in the environs where one lives. I thought I would take the liberty of making Senators and everybody else aware of National Tree Day.

Amendments Nos. 1, 2, 4 and 38 are being taken together. In regard to amendment No. 1, for international and national reporting requirements, Ireland has defined that a forest area is at least 0.1 hectares, as described in the Bill. We are committed to using the same forest definition for reporting to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. Changing the definition would mean that all carbon stocks previously reported to the UN would have to be revised, as well as estimates provided to the EU in relation to projected levels of carbon sink activity. The 0.1 hectare threshold is also the minimum area for which consent is required for all proposed afforestation projects, as described in Ireland's European Communities (Forest Consent and Assessment) Regulations 2010.

The area definition should also take into account that this Bill describes trees as being either inside or outside a forest. If the area definition is raised, this would mean that all areas below 0.5 hectares could be removed without a licence and without a requirement to replant. From Ireland's perspective, with historically low levels of forest cover, it is important to record as many forests as possible. Reducing the threshold would facilitate deforestation and the potential loss of biodiversity. In many cases these small woods interlink and adjoin the massive network of hedgerows in Ireland and are an integral part of our landscape. My Department has provided grant aid since the early 1990s for broadleaf woodlands at the threshold of 0.1 ha. In addition, many important areas of woodland along rivers and valleys are small in size and any upward movement in the threshold could result in these woodlands being deforested with no replanting.

The alternative proposal as outlined in amendment No. 2 would have the effect of lowering the definition of forest to include all trees found in groups below 0.1 hectares and would include the majority of individual trees. From a regulatory and implementation point of view, it is not practical to regulate the felling of every tree in the countryside. Landowners must be allowed to manage individual trees on their holdings in accordance with good agricultural practice based on the exemptions outlined in the Bill.

With regard to amendments Nos. 4 and 38, the terms "woodland" and "forest" are interchangeable and are used to describe groups of trees growing in close proximity. While there are no hard and fast rules, the word "forest" is used internationally to describe trees which are either broadleaf and or coniferous in character. I have, therefore, decided to stay with the terminology "forest" as it is commonly used within the national and international context. The terminology "woodland" is generally used in Ireland and Britain to describe broadleaf woodland. This Forestry Bill is about groups of trees which include broadleaf and conifer species. I therefore do not accept these amendments.