Latest news with #ForestWindblowTaskforce
Agriland
09-06-2025
- Business
- Agriland
Stapleton outlines challenges facing Forest Windblow Taskforce
The Irish Farmers' Association's (IFA) forestry chair, Pardraic Stapleton has said that the number of truck drivers is 'biggest overall challenge' facing the Forest Windblow Taskforce. Stapleton told Agriland that industry is working with international recruitment firms for drivers, but getting work permits is a concern. He said: 'The likes of South Africa is favourable as a country to go and get drivers. They drive on the same side of the road. 'To get work permits in is a bit of a process, a lot of those permits go through the same department as asylum seekers. That department is, I would say, overloaded with work. We would hope that there is some accommodation made on that score. That is the big one, whether we can overcome it or not, I don't know,' Stapleton explained. According to Stapleton, 'the clock is ticking' to lift timber that was damaged by Storm Éowyn and Storm Darragh earlier this year. 'Timber on the ground is a perishable commoditiy. It is a concern, whether we have the capacity to get through it or not. It is all down to how we are able, as a country, to get drivers,' Stapleton said. 'There is recruitment going on, but it's trying to get them trained up before they come here, and assimilate into the way we work, our rules of the road, what to expect, that work is going on over there.' 'If it is a thing they are not allowed onto the road until they are fully permitted, it's going to be too late. It's going to need a whole of government approach to get timber lifted off the ground,' Stapleton added. Forest Windblow Taskforce Stapleton also said, that no compensation has been given to forestry farmers impacted by windblow earlier this year. However, Stapleton welcomed the commitment of the Minister for State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM), Michael Healy-Rae that there will be a reconstitution grant. Stapleton said: 'We have gone to the taskforce with out concerns. We do not have the capacity to replant that amount of land within the two year timeframe that a license requires. 'I welcome the fact that the minister has given a bit of leeway on this, and he will allow time for that work to commence. Anyone picking up their timber now, will also be eligible for the reconstitution grant. That's a huge weight off.' 'The volume of timber on the ground is a long way off where it should have been. The economics of picking up that timber now, and replanting it without a reconstitution grant, it's not financially viable,' the IFA chair added.
Agriland
22-05-2025
- Business
- Agriland
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, 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 of State at DAFM Michael Healy-Rae 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. Forest licensing 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.
Agriland
09-05-2025
- Business
- Agriland
No timber glut yet but logistics a concern
This week saw a further meeting of the Forest Windblow Taskforce, a group convened after the storms of this winter that saw 25,000ha of forestry felled by the high winds experienced in the west and midlands of Ireland. The meeting was addressed by a European team of experts, who have experience of similar events on the continent and offered advice on how to deal with the fallen timber and identify bottlenecks in the process of getting it to market. It was reported that there was now no real shortage of harvesters, that extra machines have been brought in from the UK and the continent, and the pressure on getting the timber to the roadside has been greatly eased. Getting timber to the mills However, from there onwards, logistics is becoming a growing problem. There are not enough trucks or drivers available to move the timber to the mills, causing logs to accumulate at the roadside, which in this dry weather quickly causes them to lose value as they dry out. It has been suggested that drivers from outside of the EU be brought in to drive the trucks, but the time taken to issue work permits, driver's cards, and visas will run into months rather than weeks, so this option is not seen as an immediate answer. There was also the suggestion that UK hauliers be invited over to help with the situation, but the rates offered would need to be considerably higher than those being paid to Irish hauliers to be attractive. Timber market remains stable On the question of timber prices, there is some uncertainty as to how the market stands but no dramatic fall has been noted, nor has there been any great surge in the supply as was expected, not yet anyway. Helping to soak up what extra timber had become available was a shipload of logs, rather than processed timber, departing for the UK. This was the first time such shipload in many years and, should extra timber flood the market in the future, it may become more regular. The UK is the second largest importer of timber in the world with a market dominated by the repair, maintenance and improvement sector. This has presently slowed due to a lack of consumer confidence. Delay in licence application Altogether Teagasc estimate calculates that there are around 500 land owners with fallen timber who have yet to apply for a felling licence to enable them to clear it. While the situation is not urgent due to the majority of the uprooted trees still being alive, there was some puzzlement as to why growers were not coming forward to apply as applications for windblown timber are being given priority by the department. Overall, it seems that any pressing concerns have eased of late, and the situation is under control for the time being, although the logistics and delay in licence applications are cause for some concern going forward. The advice from Teagasc is still that growers should get the windblown timber sold and cleared, with a proper plan of action being put in place to achieve this as soon as possible.
