Eugene Murphy (Roscommon-Galway, Fianna Fail)
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41. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the current percentage of planted forestry land in counties Roscommon, Leitrim and Galway for 2016 and 2017 to date, in tabular form; if local authorities will be given the power to veto further planting in areas when the projected target of 17% is achieved by 2020 in view of the negative impact on farming practices in small rural townlands; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12184/17]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Figures for the three counties are as follows:

Information provided in the first column is taken from the 2012 National Forest Inventory or NFI. The NFI is the principal means of monitoring national forest cover in Ireland and records and assesses the extent and nature of Ireland’s forests, both public and private, in a timely, accurate and reproducible manner. The exercise is repeated every 5 years with work on the next NFI currently underway.

Under “Forests, products and people, Ireland’s forest policy” the aim is to increase forest cover to 18% by 2046. Following publication of new afforestation targets under the new forestry programme launched in 2015, the estimated year in which this level of cover will be reached has been updated to 2050. It is difficult to say what rules will be in place that far forward but currently the establishment of new forests are subject to rigorous checks and balances which undergo careful planning by professional foresters. Furthermore, all new forests must be established in compliance with national and EU legislation and the Department’s requirements as set out in the Forestry Standards Manual, Scheme Documents, Code of Best Practice – Ireland, the suite of environmental guidelines and requirements, and relevant procedures and protocols such as Forest Service Appropriate Assessment Procedure, consultation with statutory consultees and adherence to the Acid Sensitivity Protocol. Only projects which receive prior written approval from the Department in line with Statutory Instrument No. 558 of 2010 (as amended by S.I. No. 442 of 2012), and in compliance with sustainable forest management can proceed to planting.

I believe that forestry has an important role to play in improving the quality of life in rural Ireland both for farmers and others living in rural communities. These wide-ranging benefits are economic, environmental and social.  Firstly forestry generates economic activity in parts of rural Ireland that other forms of investment can’t reach. On the environmental side, forests protect and enhance water quality, they can alleviate flooding and they are the most important land use option for climate change mitigation. There are also social benefits that can be enjoyed from forestry in the form of amenity and recreation. Furthermore, forestry can be complementary to existing farming activities particularly where land is being underutilised. For example, where animals are grazing poor land which is more suitable for forestry, animals can be moved onto the better fields and the poorer ground can be planted. In other words, forestry does not necessarily mean a reduction in agricultural output nor does it mean converting the entire farm to forestry; instead where land is underutilised, it signals a more efficient use of land bringing the entire farm closer to its productive potential. Most importantly this approach introduces a more stable and additional income into the farm. This new income stream can be used to develop the farm business as part of the overall plan for the farm.