Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 3 October 2023
459. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to provide details of the size and location of land owned by local authorities which is zoned for forestry; and the status of forestry on each site, by local authority, in tabular form. [42705/23]
View answer502. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to provide the location, ownership, and size of all public land zoned for forestry in Ireland; and the status of forestry on each site, in tabular form. [42697/23]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 459 and 502 together.
There is no national map which zones public lands for forestry.
However a new National Land Cover map released at the end of 2022 maps the distribution of different land types. The National Land Cover Map was produced by the National Mapping Division of Tailte Éireann (formerly Ordnance Survey of Ireland) in partnership with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The aim of a land cover map is to map what is physically present on the Earth’s surface, for example forests, grasslands, and artificial areas. This Land Cover Map was produced based on 2018 data. The map includes very detailed information on land cover types in Ireland. It will have many uses in environmental assessments on water, climate, air, noise, and biodiversity and will be an important resource into the future.
It is important to note that this map and other datasets held by my Department record the existing forests in the landscape. My Department published an Indicative Forest Statement in 2008 that provides a very high-level guidance in relation to the suitability of land for afforestation. However this map is not suitable for field assessments and does not provide zoning of land parcels for afforestation within public or private ownership.
In addition, my Department recently published the Forestry Statistics Ireland 2023 report which includes information on forest cover and ownership in Ireland.
gov.ie - Forest Statistics and Mapping (gov.ie)
As regards the treatment of forestry in Local Development Plans by county councils this is is not a matter I would have information on and may be more appropriate for my colleague the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage.
