The closing date for submissions under a public consultation on ‘the future of forests in Ireland’ is this Wednesday (April 27).
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine recently took to Twitter to issue a reminder of the approaching deadline, saying: “Have your say on our public consultation survey on the future of forests in Ireland to help shape a new shared vision and develop a new strategy for forests and trees in Ireland.”
The consultation was opened by the department on March 16, as part of the development of a new Forestry Strategy for Ireland under ‘Project Woodland’.
All citizens, private organisations, public authorities, communities and stakeholders are being urged to contribute.
The online questionnaire takes around 15 minutes to complete and features sections on why forests are planted; where they are planted; the types of trees involved; and how forests are managed.
The survey can be accessed under ‘consultations’ through the government’s website.
In other recent forestry-related news, the semi-state body Coillte launched a strategy of its own last week to create 100,000ha of new forests by 2050.
The aim of the strategy, Coillte said, is to deliver benefits from forests and bring more focus to climate action, as well as “setting ambitious new targets on biodiversity and recreation”.
The forestry body said that it intends to consult widely with key stakeholders on the strategic vision.
Among the climate-related actions that Coillte proposes to deliver as part of the strategy are:
- Enable creation of 100,000ha of new forests by 2050 and create a carbon sink of 18 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2);
- Manage its existing forest estate to capture an additional 10 million tonnes of CO2 in its forests, soils and wood products by 2050;
- Redesign 30,000ha of peatland forests by 2050 through a programme of rewetting or rewilding;
- Produce sustainable wood products that, in 2050, displace 2.7 million tonnes of CO2 per year from fossil-based products such as concrete, steel and plastic;
- Enable the generation of an additional one gigawatt of renewable wind energy by 2030 via its joint venture company FuturEnergy Ireland.