226. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether the Mid-Term Review of the Forestry Programme 2023–2027 identified any failure to meet afforestation targets since the programme commenced in September 2023; and if so, the corrective measures being implemented. [22685/26]
Parliamentary questions
Questions
TDs ask ministers questions to get answers on the record, most of them in writing. Here is every one asked in the 34th Dáil, by the department it went to and the subject heading it was filed under. How questions work
Browse the questions
472 questions match, newest first.
227. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the current annual afforestation rate compared with the Government’s national forestry targets; and whether the measures announced in the Mid-Term Review of the Forestry Programme 2023-2027 will be sufficient to close the gap. [22686/26]
228. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the reason the Mid-Term Review of the Forestry Programme 2023-2027 resulted primarily in incremental scheme changes rather than structural reforms to address the continuing decline in new forestry planting. [22687/26]
229. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine how the additional €3.5 million allocated for forestry in 2026 under the Mid-Term Review will be distributed across forestry schemes, and whether this level of funding is sufficient to address sector concerns. [22688/26]
230. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether any cost–benefit analysis was undertaken prior to increasing grant rates for fencing, forest roads and reforestation supports. [22689/26]
231. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether his Department considered more substantial increases in grant supports in light of rising construction, labour and materials costs in the forestry sector. [22692/26]
232. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of applications received under the new Silvoarable and Forest Gardening agroforestry pilot schemes; and whether participation to date meets Department expectations. [22693/26]
233. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the metrics that will be used to evaluate the success of the new Silvoarable and Forest Gardening agroforestry pilot schemes; and whether they will lead to permanent scheme design changes. [22694/26]
234. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether his Department has assessed the likely uptake of the newly introduced Alluvial Woodland planting option, particularly in relation to biodiversity and floodplain restoration. [22695/26]
235. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether his Department has assessed the extent to which administrative delays continue to affect forestry licensing and scheme approvals. [22696/26]
236. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when the proposed mapping layer identifying FT2 eligible lands will be made available to the sector and how delays in its publication may impact scheme uptake. [22697/26]
237. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether his Department has estimated the amount of time that will be saved by introducing pre-application discussions for the native woodland conservation scheme; and whether this will reduce application rejection rates. [22698/26]
238. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of potential applicants excluded from forestry schemes under the previous farmer definition; and whether the change to the definition was made in response to low participation rates. [22699/26]
239. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether the removal of the four-year BISS-BPS requirement will significantly increase the number of eligible forestry applicants. [22700/26]
240. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether his Department has analysed whether forestry supports remain competitive with other agricultural schemes in terms of farmer income. [22701/26]
241. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the reason the mid-term review of the Forestry Programme 2023-2027 concluded that the proposed changes would have no likely environmental impacts; and whether an independent environmental assessment was conducted. [22702/26]
242. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether increased grant rates for forest roads will be sufficient to address current delays in timber mobilisation from plantations. [22704/26]
243. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine which proposals from the mid-term review of the Forestry Programme 2023-2027 consultation could not be implemented due to State aid constraints; and when these proposals will be reconsidered. [22705/26]
244. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether his Department has begun work on the next forestry programme after 2027; and the way in which the lessons from the mid-term review will inform its design. [22706/26]
245. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the assessment that has been carried out by his Department regarding the long-term resilience of Ireland's current forestry model which is heavily reliant on monoculture plantations, in the context of increasing storm frequency and climate change. [22707/26]
246. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether the mid-term review of the Forestry Programme 2023-2027 considered the vulnerability of monoculture plantations to windthrow, given the shallow rooting structures typical of certain conifer species. [22708/26]
247. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the measures being introduced under the Forestry Programme 2023-2027 to diversify species composition in new afforestation projects to improve climate resilience. [22709/26]
248. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether his Department has assessed the risk of increased wildfire incidence in Irish forests due to climate change; and whether the current programme design sufficiently addresses this risk [22710/26]
249. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether the climate resilient reforestation scheme includes provisions to encourage mixed species planting rather than replanting with the same species following storm damage or disease outbreaks. [22717/26]
250. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the proportion of afforestation under the current forestry programme that is expected to consist of mixed woodland or native species, as opposed to single-species plantations. [22718/26]