<
https://theconversation.com/ireland-has-lost-almost-all-of-its-native-forests-heres-how-to-bring-them-back-195511>
"Despite its green image, Ireland has surprisingly little forest. Across
Europe, nations average around 35% forest cover but in Ireland the figure is
just 11%, one of the lowest on the continent.
This hasn’t always been the case. Thousands of years ago, more than 80% of the
island of Ireland was covered in trees. Over many centuries they were then
almost entirely chopped down to make way for fields and pasture and by 1925,
only 1% was forested. The only trees that remained were on land that was
unsuitable for any type of agriculture.
For a number of decades the government has paid farmers and other private
landowners to plant trees on their land in place of intensive agriculture. But
these grants have so far fallen short of reaching their target of 18% forest
cover.
Until recently forestry was considered valuable only as a supply of timber to
be harvested. This explains why, of that 11% of the Republic of Ireland that is
forested, the vast majority (9% of the country) is planted with spruces like
the Sitka spruce, a fast growing conifer originally from Alaska which can be
harvested after just 15 years. Just 2% of Ireland is covered with native
broadleaf trees.
The current grants neglect many things. For instance, once planted with trees,
the land must remain permanently in forestry which acts as a “negative nudge”
for landowners who may want to keep their options open. Tax incentives for
continued forest cover might provide less of a psychological barrier.
The annual grants are also designed with harvesting in mind and so are only
paid for 15 to 20 years. That’s no use to a landowner wanting to plant a mixed
species forest which can take up to 100 years to mature yet would provide no
return beyond 20 years. Therefore the grants provide a strong financial
incentive to continue to plant fast-growing non-native species which when
harvested can disturb wildlife, release carbon, damage water quality and leave
the landscape looking scarred.
So how might Ireland be covered with forests – with the right mix including
more native, broadleaf trees – once again?"
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
