An independent review is to be carried out into the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine’s (DAFM) ash dieback support scheme.
Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine with responsibility for forestry matters, Senator Pippa Hackett announced the establishment of the independent review group today (Wednesday, June 7).
The group will comprise three members of the board that are currently overseeing the implementation of Project Woodland:
- Jo O’Hara, former chief executive of the Scottish Forestry Commission;
- Jerry Grant, former managing director of Irish Water;
- Matt Crowe, former director of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The trio will be tasked with reviewing the existing and previous supports available to landowners with ash plantations funded under the National Forestry Programme which are infected with Chalara or ash dieback disease.
They will engage with “relevant stakeholders to seek their views on the current supports for landowners”.
The group is set to make a series of recommendations on the effectiveness of these supports to Minister Hackett within three months.
Ash dieback
Commenting on the establishment of the review group, Minister Pippa Hackett said: “Unfortunately, ash dieback is now endemic in our countryside.
“To date my department has provided over €9 million in support to landowners with infected plantations by removing and replanting their sites with alternative species. We have also doubled the rates for this recently.
“As we approach 10 years of these supports, I have listened to the concerns of landowners and I have tasked an independent group to review existing department supports.”
The Minister added: “My department has received applications for assistance under these schemes for almost 6,500ha of grant-aided ash to date.
“It’s important with the upcoming introduction of a new forestry programme that farmers continue to have confidence in the forestry schemes and this review will be very timely.”
“Consultation with stakeholders will be an essential part of the review and the group will be in direct contact with stakeholders to ensure that their voice is heard.
“I expect to receive the group‘s final report by September 15, after which I will fully consider its recommendations,” she added.
The first confirmed case of ash dieback in Ireland was made on October 12, 2012 at a forestry plantation site which had been planted in 2009 with trees imported from continental Europe.
In 2013, the government launched a reconstitution scheme to restore forests planted under the afforestation scheme.
After it was determined that eradication of the disease was not feasible, the department launched the Reconstitution and Underplanting Scheme (RUS) in June 2020.
The purpose of the new scheme was to clear all ash trees and replant with other species.
In March, Minister Hackett introduced an interim reconstitution scheme for ash dieback which included doubling site clearance rates, increasing grant rates and an improved premium regime.
Farming organisations have long criticised the treatment of farmers impacted by ash dieback by the government.
They have claimed that it has been among the main causes for the lack of interest in planting trees among farmers.