Minister Healy-Rae encourages forest owners without a licence, affected by recent storms, to apply
- Foilsithe: 20 Márta 2025
- An t-eolas is déanaí: 12 Aibreán 2025
Minister of State for Forestry, Horticulture and Farm Safety, Michael Healy-Rae, speaking at the fourth Forest Windblow Taskforce this week, has urged those remaining forest owners affected by the recent storms, without a felling or road licence, to progress their applications for a licence. The Taskforce, which took place on Tuesday, 18 March, heard that over 63% of affected forests have licences in place already, with another 11% in the system prioritised for processing.
Following the meeting, Minister Healy-Rae stated:
“I would urge those remaining 25% of affected forest owners to engage with their foresters and submit a licence application to my department, where they will be given a prioritised status through the system. We can’t give a licence to someone who hasn’t applied. This will facilitate forest owners to prepare to sell their timber and allow for further planning around harvesting and mobilising resources.”
The Taskforce further discussed the response to Storm Éowyn and Storm Darragh, and is seeking to deliver a co-ordinated and rapid response to the storm damage, by encouraging collaboration across the sector. The Minister also welcomed the contribution of the Irish Road Hauliers Association and the Agriculture and Forestry Contractors Association, as well as Bord na Móna concluding:
“I want to acknowledge the efforts of all of the Taskforce members to date in particular the open engagement on capacity, and also welcome Bord na Móna’s commitment to purchasing even more Irish material for their Edenderry plant.”
Notes
Teagasc will assist rolling out the decision support tools at the various Teagasc-led events - talking Timber and one-to-one clinics.