Up to the week ending 30th August, 2024, my Department has approved 363 afforestation licences, representing 3,104 hectares. In addition, 278 approvals have issued under the Native Tree Area Scheme, representing 304 hectares.
Recent weeks have seen an upward trend in afforestation licence approvals, with 70 licences for 560 hectares issuing in August, the highest output since late 2022.
As regards planting, some 1,091 hectares have been planted and paid for to date in 2024, with applications for payment being submitted and paid on a weekly basis. It should be noted that there are also 4,858 hectares approved and available for planting, and I would encourage landowners who have permission to plant to avail of this opportunity.
In order to encourage uptake my Department is engaging in extensive promotion of the new forestry options and the enhanced payments available, including an ongoing media campaign across all communication channels, as well as direct messaging of farmers and landowners. In collaboration with Teagasc, my Department will hold four regional town hall information and advice meetings in October. In addition, my Department is funding 42 stakeholder projects, which are promoting the Forestry Programme through a wide variety of approaches. These will engage with the wider community to highlight the benefits of forests to deliver multiple societal objectives - economic, social and environmental.
