Eugene Murphy (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I have no doubt that the Minister of State's heart is in the right place in her efforts to deal with this issue and I welcome her statement today. Senator O'Loughlin quoted figures on licences going back to 2016 which were quite high but in some of the intervening years there has been a drop. This should not have all been dropped on the Minister of State's desk. It is not all her fault. Part of the problem has been building up for quite some years.

I will not go into the whole Mackinnon report but I want to support Senator Paul Daly's remarks on its implementation. I know that the Minister of State is aware of that and is trying to work on it. It needs to be implemented as quickly as possible. A number of speakers, Senators Dolan, Daly, O'Loughlin and others, have spoken about the process. The fact that you have to go four licences though this whole process is simply not workable. It is causing a lot of frustration. I would urge the Minister of State to consider, as Senator Paul Daly said, one licence with a proper management plan. We should insist on a proper management plan with one licence. That is very important.

Many others have noted that we talk about climate action and its importance in terms of reducing our carbon count. It will be so important. Senator Paul Daly mentioned the agri-environmental schemes. We must get the forestry sector right, not only to protect the employment that is there but for climate change because it can make a huge contribution. Farmers and foresters in general are very willing to work in that regard. There is a huge emphasis on planting trees, as the Minister of State knows.

Project Woodland has been mentioned. There are extra ecologists and inspectors, as Senators O'Loughlin and Dolan noted, which is good. I think it will help to further alleviate the difficulties in the system. There is nothing as nice for me as walking on Sliabh Bawn, which I am inviting the Minister of State to visit again, very close to my home in County Roscommon, walking among the trees, looking at the nature. There is a great therapeutic value in trees and forests and they should be developed for the local communities too, which is really important.

We have to acknowledge how successfully Sitka spruce grows in this country. Many of the timber companies are exporting this. It is greatly sought after in places such as England. We have been importing timber from Latvia, and not since today nor yesterday but for a number of years. We have to get the balance right and manage it properly but Sitka spruce grows really well on Irish land. It is probably the only thing that will grow on some of that Irish land which is exceptionally good for it. Our native trees are very important, of course, but we must realise the economic value of Sitka spruce. I accept that we need to plant them in the right areas.

There is a lot of repetition there. I am pleading with the Minister of State, and I know she will do her best, to work as hard as she can to solve this matter because it is of grave concern at this stage. She is going in the right direction. Hopefully it will be a success.