Minister at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Senator Pippa Hackett, yesterday launched the 33rd edition of the The Irish Timber Growers’ Association (ITGA) Forestry and Timber Yearbook.
The 2022 Forestry and Timber Yearbook contains over 200 pages of information, including industry statistics and the directory of services for timber growers, forestry professionals, the timber industry as well as the general public.
Furthermore, the publication highlights many attributes of forestry, including its economic, environmental and social importance.
Launching the yearbook, Minister Hackett said:
“Given the climate and biodiversity crises we are facing, there has never been a more important time for us to work together to get the most from our trees.
“We need forests and woodlands in Ireland, for our communities, our climate, our biodiversity and our timber industry.”
The ITGA chairman, Brendan Lacey, stressed the importance of forests for climate and health benefits, as well as locally grown timber for much needed housing, recreation and food.
Lacey thanked Minister Hackett and stated:
“As a sector, forestry is ideally placed to form a core part of agriculture in Ireland, enhancing its sustainability through offsetting agricultural emissions, sequestering carbon and increasing biodiversity.
“The dramatic decline in tree planting in recent years must be reversed to achieve these beneficial goals and to meet our climate change mitigation targets.”
Lacey also thanked Coillte, the Murray Timber Group and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, the main Yearbook sponsors, and the various companies, organisations and individuals who continue to support its publication.
Yearbooks can be ordered online or by contacting the ITGA directly.