Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 14 May 2026
107. Deputy John Paul O'Shea asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of afforestation, felling and road licences issued in Cork in 2024, 2025 and to date in 2026; the current average processing time for such licences; the number of applications awaiting decision in County Cork; the steps being taken to address delays impacting landowners; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34696/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe median processing times for approved applications for the Cork area in 2026 are:
• 6 months for Afforestation,
• less than 3 months for Forest Roads,
• 6 months for Felling (Private) and 3 months for Felling (Coillte).
In 2024, licence applications submitted for the Cork area include:
• Afforestation was 52 with none pending and 55 approved.
• Forest Roads was 65 with one pending and 81 approved.
• Felling (Private) was 95 with one pending and 86 approved.
• Felling (Coillte) was 134 with 14 pending and 118 approved.
In 2025, licence applications submitted for the Cork area include:
• Afforestation was 39 with four pending and 25 approved.
• Forest Roads was 41 with six pending and 52 approved.
• Felling (Private) was 104 with 15 pending and 133 approved.
• Felling (Coillte) was 28 with 14 pending and 118 approved.
In 2026 to date, licence applications submitted for the Cork area include:
• Afforestation was 14 with 10 pending and 25 approved.
• Forest Roads was 16 with 13 pending and nine approved.
• Felling (Private) was 42 with one pending and 86 approved.
• Felling (Coillte) was 116 with 28 pending and 42 approved.
My Department has made a number of improvements to reduce processing times for forestry licences. Significant investment has been made in additional staffing resources including forestry inspectors, ecologists, archaeologists, engineers and administrative staff to ensure that the majority of licences are now processes well within the timelines set out in the Farmers Charter.
Application procedures continue to be streamlined with the majority of applications now completed online with the introduction of iPlan, the forest service online planning tool launched in November 2025, significantly helping online forest management planning.
