A total of 163 forestry development licences have been issued by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) over recent weeks.
However, the polar opposite scenario is unfolding north of the border.
A leading industry representative is now confirming that Northern Ireland’s private forestry and woodland development sector has reached ‘crisis’ point.
Managing director at Premier Woodlands, John Herington has claimed that this is a direct result of Forest Service not confirming, as of yet, any tree planting approvals for new woodland creation
courtesy of Northern Ireland’s 2023/24 Forestry Expansion Scheme (FES) and Small Woodland Grant Scheme (SWGS).
NI forestry
Forest Service is an agency within the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA).
Both the current Forestry Expansion Scheme (FES) and Small Woodland Grant Scheme (SWGS) measures were funded through the last (and final) Rural Development Plan (RDP), agreed by the EU for Northern Ireland.
John Hetherington, said: “There are also big problems arising with regard to tree felling licences, and the knock-on impact on replanting projections. Felling licence applications can take up to 12 months to be processed.
“All of these problems have arisen as a direct result of inaction on the part of Forest Service. As a consequence, all of the businesses involved in the provision of forestry and woodland and development services here in NI have now reached a key tipping point.
“We are now in the month of March. If Forest Service does not act in the next week or two, the 2023/2024 tree planting season will have passed without any new woodland creation at all.
“This would totally jeopardise the initiatives that will be required to use tree planting as a frontline response to the challenges posed by climate change,” he added.
Hetherington stressed that land owners from NI submitted their FES and SWGS applications last August, and complied fully with scheme measures.
“But since then, applicants have received no information back regarding the administration of their respective projects,” he said.
“Normally, Forest Service would issue letters-of-offer for grant aid linked to both FES and SWGS, prior to Christmas of the year in which applications had been submitted.
“Forest Service has not met its planting targets set under FES and SWGS up to this point, so, the RDP money to fund the 2023/2024 schemes should have been available if new woodland creation grant contracts had been confirmed before December 31.”
He re-emphasised that farmers and other landowners, committed to forestry and woodland development in NI did everything in full before the application deadline in August.
