A plan to grow 100,000 hectares of new forests in Ireland by 2050 aims to support the delivery of one-third of the country’s afforestation target, and create a carbon sink of 18 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2). The scheme was unveiled by Coillte, a commercial forestry business responsible for the management of 440,000 hectares of Ireland’s forests, which represents 7% of the country.
Bernie Gray, Coillte chairwoman, shared that the plan “emphasises climate action, biodiversity and aims to increase development of wonderful recreation spaces for people to enjoy while continuing to deliver sustainable wood products to support building new homes”.
“Over the last few years, we have been exploring ways in which Coillte can play an increasing role in Ireland’s climate action and biodiversity agenda, while recognising that financial sustainability is integral to Coillte achieving its purpose, so that the multiple benefits from our forests and land for the people of Ireland can be delivered.”
Coillte said it would also manage its existing forest estate to capture an additional 10m tonnes of CO2. It plans to produce 25m cubic metres of timber to help Ireland achieve its housing ambition of 300,000 new homes by 2030, and promote the increased use of wood products to raise the level of timber homes from 20% to 80% by 2050.
Along with this, Coillte said it would focus on producing sustainable wood products that in 2050 displaces 2.7m tonnes of CO2 per year from fossil-based products like concrete, steel and plastic.
Another aspect of the plan is that Coillte intends to facilitate the investment of €100m to create visitor destinations by 2030 to support the growth in tourism and recreation in Ireland and to double the number of recreation areas to 500 nationally.
“We have developed a comprehensive strategic vision that, among other things, would see us growing new forests, managing our existing forests for greater carbon capture, delivering valuable wood products, enhancing biodiversity, and creating more incredible recreational spaces for the enjoyment of our citizens and tourists,” Gray concluded.