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Forestry Sector

Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 24 June 2021

Thursday, 24 June 2021

Questions (484)

Michael Healy-Rae

Question:

484. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will address a matter in relation to private forestry farms (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34010/21]

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Written answers

A Natura Impact Statement (NIS) should only be supplied as part of the forestry licence application  when specifically requested to do so by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.  Where the Department seeks an NIS, the areas that the applicants ecologists should pay particular attention to when completing the NIS are highlighted, with respect to the European sites screened in for that application.

For the avoidance of doubt, the Department will not be producing NIS’s or paying for them, if they are required.

Where the Department has sufficient information on file to prepare an Appropriate Assessment Report and Appropriate Assessment Determination, an NIS is not required from the applicant.

The Department has recently reviewed its systems for the preparation of Appropriate Assessment Screening Determinations, Appropriate Assessment Reports and Appropriate Assessment Determinations.  We have made some improvements to the system to optimise the time of the ecologists to concentrate on the ecology aspects of each application.  Currently, these improvements are only applied to private tree felling licence (TFL) applications with ecologists working mostly on these files in advance of the system being developed further to assist with forest road works and afforestation licence applications.

You will note that there has been a week-on-week increase in output of private forestry licences for the last six weeks as a result of these improvements. In that time, we have issued an average of between 90-100 licences per week.

Along with Minister of State Pippa Hackett, who has overall responsibility for the sector, I am committed to seeing this trend continue.

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