Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail)
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517. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if farmers who are participating in State funded forestry schemes can receive grant and premium aid supports when clear felling or replanting trees due to damage caused by wind and adverse weather; his plans to extend such supports for such scenarios; if there is an obligation on forestry scheme participants to replant forested areas damaged by adverse weather; and if no grant and premium supports are available in such scenarios. [50232/18]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Following the adverse weather conditions experienced in the winter of 2013/2014, culminating in Storm Darwin, my Department provided a Reconstitution Scheme for storm affected plantations. That particular winter, there was a series of extreme wind events coupled with water-logged soils, which resulted in the loss of some six million trees. The Reconstitution Scheme opened in 2017 and payments have now been finalised. I do not intend to reopen this scheme.

There is an obligation on all land owners with forestry, whether grant-aided or not, to replant where forestry is felled during normal tree felling operations or following damage by adverse weather. Indeed, following wind blow, felled or partially felled trees will be dangerous and it is imperative that a forester or a person experienced in dealing with blown trees fells and removes timber to minimise any danger to other trees, people and property.

It is efficient to manage normal thinning and tree felling operations over time in order to spread both the income from the felled timber and the replanting costs evenly. The proceeds from clear-fell are more than sufficient to cover the costs of replanting while still providing profit which of course is tax-free to the beneficiary.

The purpose of the State’s main grant-aid schemes is to promote forestry by providing initial start-up incentives. These schemes were not developed to provide indefinite assistance to land owners within a viable industry. Hence, replanting operations do not attract subsidies under the schemes as it is considered that the land owner is well-placed to sustain their investment.