The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has recently issued just five additional afforestation licences, covering 36 hectares of new planting. According to the latest forestry statistics released by the department, a total of 314 afforestation licences have been granted up to August 9, totaling 2,626 hectares. There have been 427 valid afforestation applications submitted to the department this year, with an additional 12 applications received just last week. The department reported that as of last Friday, 961 hectares of land had been afforested, marking an increase of 52 hectares from the previous week. It is important to note that the figures for afforestation planted in 2024 only reflect afforestation that has been paid at the first grant stage this year, including under the Native Area Tree Scheme (NTAS).
In addition to the afforestation licences, the department issued 20 additional felling licences last week, with the majority (13) granted for Coillte plantations. So far this year, the department has granted 654 private felling licences and 528 Coillte felling licences. Up to August 9, DAFM has received 462 applications for forest roads, with 542 licences issued year-to-date (YTD), including 16 issued just last week, covering a total of 202 kilometers of roads.
The Social, Economic and Environmental Forestry Association of Ireland (SEEFA) expressed concern over the latest licensing data, highlighting a 78% decrease in hectares licensed for afforestation last week. The association stated, “The year has yet to produce a single week that meets the annual target pace, and every slight improvement is soon followed by more disappointment.” SEEFA further criticized the government for failing to achieve meaningful consistency, clear the backlog, or improve confidence among landowners, farmers, and investors in the forestry sector.
The forestry data also revealed that an additional 6 licences were granted for the Reconstitution of Ash Dieback Scheme, bringing the total number of such licences issued so far this year to 528, covering 1,904 hectares. Additionally, there have been 275 licences issued for the NTAS (covering 301 hectares) and 114 for the Woodland Improvement Scheme (WIS) spanning 588 hectares. Under the Deer Tree Shelter Scheme (DTS), 173 applications have been granted, corresponding to 760 hectares. As of August 9, the department has received 35 afforestation appeals, 17 tree felling appeals, and 6 appeals related to forestry roads since the beginning of the year.
