Ciarán Cuffe, Minister with responsibility for Climate Change, is representing Ireland at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change this week.  2011 is the UN International Year of the Forest and world attention at the UN COP 16 talks in Cancun this week is keenly focusing on the roles world’s forests play  in mitigating climate change as well as providing important long term economic, ecological and social benefits. A comprehensive new Green Party forestry policy similarly seeks to detail how a sustainable Irish forestry industry will have a central role in Ireland’s developing green economy whilst also delivering important ecological and amenity benefits.  The new policy will be presented to the Green Party National Council for consideration this Saturday December 11th.

Forests in Ireland will have an increasingly important role in regards to developing strong sustainable local employment, local enterprise, and will play a key role in developing Ireland’s energy security. This relatively young industry now provides over 1% of GDP and employs over 16,000 people, mostly in rural areas. Yet as Ireland has the best tree growing conditions in Europe there is growing realisation that there is great potential to develop this valuable sector.

Forestry is also one of the bright sectors in the Irish economy at the present time along with the developing biomass energy sector. Since the collapse of the Irish construction industry the timber processing sector has re-invented itself and now exports most of what it produces, winning market share by selling well made certified timber into Continental Europe and the UK. 

Yet to achieve a fully productive industry, policy needs to ensure that afforestation rates need to reach a 17% forest cover target by 2030 (this is still well below the European average of 43% cover). To achieve this target Green Party policy recommends increasing afforestation to 15,000 ha per annum which would also create 490 jobs every year. Additionally, to create a fully sustainable forest industry considerable changes must also be introduced to encourage Close to Nature-Continuous Cover, non-clearfell forestry management practices that not only prioritise long term economic benefits but also important ecological and social values. And to fully develop a vibrant forest culture in Ireland, much more education on the wider benefits of forests must be delivered to our young people and those involved in local enterprise. With the foregoing in mind, the Green Party supports a new vision for Ireland’s forests with policies that emphasise long term, sustainable values that not only benefit us but also our future generations.
 
Minister Cuffe stated

"One of the items that is being debated here in Cancun is the United Nations REDD* world forest policy. Forestry has a major role to play in Climate Change mitigation and forestry has an important role to play in Ireland's effort to combat climate change. The new Green Party policy advocates silvicultural management practises that deliver effective carbon sequestration and forests resiliant to the effects of climate change. "

Trevor Sargent T.D. and Green Party spokesperson on Forestry commented

"Forestry has great potential to increase it's levels of secure long-term employment with many more downstream jobs that flow from an ambitious planting programme. The proposals in this policy should be adopted by the next government and I hope that the Green Party will be part of that government to ensure that both our economy and our environment will benefit from the proposed initiatives"

 * REDD The United Nations Collaborative Programme on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries