Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 20 April 2023
104. Deputy Michael McNamara asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will accept certification from foresters accredited with his Department as to the status of an ash plantation for the purposes of removal of dead trees and replanting, or whether he is insisting on certification by his own Department’s officials on the matter. [18552/23]
View answerRegarding the administration of the ash dieback scheme, such is the prevalence of the disease throughout the country that my Department no longer requires any damage assessment to be carried out. This was clarified to all registered foresters in a Circular to the trade that issued in June last year.
My Department maintains a register of private foresters who are available for work on the Department forestry schemes. My Department requires that those who wish to be on this list of 'registered foresters' provide the Department with evidence of a suitable forestry qualification and professional indemnity insurance, before admittance onto this list. Those foresters on this list are referred to as 'registered foresters'. My Department does not confer an accreditation to these registered foresters.
However, by being a registered forester one is entitled to make an application for a forestry scheme (including the Reconstitution and Underplanting scheme (RUS) - (Ash Dieback scheme)). Like other schemes all applications when received are then subject to an inspection process by a Departmental Forestry Inspector which may include a physical inspection to confirm that the details in the application are correct.
