Jackie Cahill TD, chair of the Committee on Agriculture and Marine has called for a customer service charter for the forestry sector. Speaking at the launch of the committee's report Issues Impacting the Forestry Sector in Ireland on Tuesday, Deputy Cahill said: "The charter would assist in building confidence in the forestry licensing system for all applicants."
The report identified a number of key issues facing the sector, including licensing, ash dieback, farm forestry and planning for the future.
It also referenced the Mackinnon report and recommended that an independent project manager be appointed to assess the efficiency of the Forest Service.
"An agreed timeframe should be introduced into the licensing application and appeals process to provide certainty to applicants," said Deputy Cahill.
"The Committee recommends that the Department and stakeholders have quarterly meetings to monitor the implementation of a charter of rights and a timeframe agreed by the Department and stakeholders."
Building trust
Deputy Matt Carty, Sinn Fein's spokesperson for agriculture stressed the importance of "building trust" between the Department and forestry stakeholders, especially farmers. The committee maintained the delay in licence approvals was still a major factor and recommended that "additional resources be allocated as soon as practicable to deal with the backlog of licence applications and appeals".
Recommendations
The committee made a number of other recommendations including:
Road and thinning permits should be included as a condition in afforestation licences rather than through individual applications. Additional financial resources to be put in place for forest owners with ash dieback including grant aid to cover some financial loss as well as for clearing affected plantations. Owners who replant their sites should be able to draw a premium for 15 years.The delivery of a specific strategy to increase the proportion of native broadleaf afforestation.Committee members were concerned about "the dramatic decrease in the number of farmers involved in afforestation given the crucial role they must play if forestry policy is to be successful", according to Deputy Cahill.
"The Committee believes that to provide sufficient encouragement for farmers to enter, re-enter and remain within a forestry programme it must have sufficient supports in place. These supports should include economic benefits as well as assurances as to fair engagement with the licensing system," Cahill added.
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Jackie Cahill TD, chair of the Committee on Agriculture and Marine has called for a customer service charter for the forestry sector. Speaking at the launch of the committee's report Issues Impacting the Forestry Sector in Ireland on Tuesday, Deputy Cahill said: "The charter would assist in building confidence in the forestry licensing system for all applicants."
The report identified a number of key issues facing the sector, including licensing, ash dieback, farm forestry and planning for the future.
It also referenced the Mackinnon report and recommended that an independent project manager be appointed to assess the efficiency of the Forest Service.
"An agreed timeframe should be introduced into the licensing application and appeals process to provide certainty to applicants," said Deputy Cahill.
"The Committee recommends that the Department and stakeholders have quarterly meetings to monitor the implementation of a charter of rights and a timeframe agreed by the Department and stakeholders."
Building trust
Deputy Matt Carty, Sinn Fein's spokesperson for agriculture stressed the importance of "building trust" between the Department and forestry stakeholders, especially farmers. The committee maintained the delay in licence approvals was still a major factor and recommended that "additional resources be allocated as soon as practicable to deal with the backlog of licence applications and appeals".
Recommendations
The committee made a number of other recommendations including:
Road and thinning permits should be included as a condition in afforestation licences rather than through individual applications. Additional financial resources to be put in place for forest owners with ash dieback including grant aid to cover some financial loss as well as for clearing affected plantations. Owners who replant their sites should be able to draw a premium for 15 years.The delivery of a specific strategy to increase the proportion of native broadleaf afforestation.Committee members were concerned about "the dramatic decrease in the number of farmers involved in afforestation given the crucial role they must play if forestry policy is to be successful", according to Deputy Cahill.
"The Committee believes that to provide sufficient encouragement for farmers to enter, re-enter and remain within a forestry programme it must have sufficient supports in place. These supports should include economic benefits as well as assurances as to fair engagement with the licensing system," Cahill added.
Read more
In pictures: 1,700 calves on offer in Bandon Mart
€70,000 spent on dispute over eight metres of land
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