Minister welcomes increase in forestry harvesting capacity
Minister of State with responsibility for forestry, farm safety and horticulture, Michael Healy-Rae has welcomed the discussion at the sixth meeting of the Forest Windblow Taskforce.
The Forest Windblow Taskforce was set up by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) earlier this year in the wake of Storm Éowyn, which caused substantial damage to thousands of hectares of forestry.
The taskforce comprises stakeholders representing forest owners, forestry companies, Teagasc, and Coillte.
Minister Healy-Rae said: “I welcome the progress made following the recent workshop involving taskforce members, as well as agreement on the next steps in the action plan."
He added that the action plan is being used as a guide "in tackling the harvesting, silvicultural, training, supply chain and marketing challenges posed by the catastrophic Storm Éowyn event that occurred on the 24th of January, 2025, and resulted in record breaking levels of windblow to Irish forests".
Minister Healy-Rae continued: “I very much welcome how proactive the sector has been in tackling the various issues.
"The harvesting capacity on the island is being increased as machines are being brought into the country to help in the harvesting effort.
"I also welcome the fact that the harvesting capacity is now mostly involved in areas where there is wind damage."
The minister added that there has been an effort to seek new and expanded export markets for both round logs and finished sawn timber, and that the sawmills in Ireland have confirmed their ability to increase capacity.
The minister concluded: "I fully realise that we still have a lot to do. For example, capacity in the haulage sector, and in particular with the current shortage of drivers, is a big issue that we are working to address.”
The minister said that an action plan is currently being worked on by the taskforce to identify issues, bottlenecks and proposed solutions.
According to the department, currently 65% of the windblown area has a felling licence, with an additional 11% with applications in the system, which are prioritised.
Regarding the other 24%, DAFM is now writing to these last remaining 24% to encourage them to submit an application.
