Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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331. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will provide details of the arrangement with a private body, the Royal Dublin Society, whereby the Forest Service funds the society's annual forestry awards; in relation to these awards, the way Coillte qualifies as a community for the purposes of the recent Royal Dublin Society community forestry award; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26239/15]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The RDS-Forest Service Irish Forestry Awards recognise and reward farmers and woodland owners who are employing the principles of sustainable forestry management on their properties. The Awards competition is organised by the Royal Dublin Society (RDS) with financial support from my Department on foot of requests by the organisers in each year. The most recent year in respect of which funding was provided by my Department towards the cost of running the awards competition was 2013 when a contribution of €10,000 was made with the balance provided by the RDS. A request for financial support in respect of the 2015 Awards is currently under consideration by my Department.

The operation of the Awards competition, including advertising, decisions in relation to the categories in each year, the associated entry criteria, composition of the judging panel and adjudication on the entries, are matters for the RDS. I understand, however, that the Community Woodlands Awards Category is designed to encourage and reward projects involving community woodlands and forests which have been established and managed in a way which is sustainable and beneficial to the landscape, the local people, biodiversity and the economy and that this Award is open to woodland owners or managers from the public and voluntary sectors. I note that the winner in the Community Woodlands Awards Category in 2014 was Cavan Burren Park which is jointly managed by Coillte and Cavan County Council who have been working together to deliver local tourism and recreation facilities while protecting the landscape and heritage for future generations.