Forestry Sector

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 17 June 2026

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Wednesday, 17 June 2026

Ceisteanna (151, 152, 153, 154)

Liam Quaide

Ceist:

151. Deputy Liam Quaide asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to provide details of all felling licence applications, approvals or active licences relating to Curragh Wood, Midleton, County Cork, from 2024 to date in 2026; to include the licence reference number, applicant, date of application, date of decision, area covered, proposed felling type, species composition, replanting plan, licence conditions, expiry date, appeal status and links to all publicly available maps and supporting documents; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46232/26]

Liam Quaide

Ceist:

152. Deputy Liam Quaide asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the ecological, hydrological, appropriate assessment or EIA screening that was carried out in respect of proposed felling at Curragh Wood, Midleton, County Cork; the consideration that was given to the river Leamlara, mixed woodland habitat, protected species, recreational use and long-established woodland characteristics; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46233/26]

Liam Quaide

Ceist:

153. Deputy Liam Quaide asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether his Department will arrange an inspection or review of any proposed felling operations at Curragh Wood, Midleton, County Cork, before works commence, in view of local concerns about biodiversity, water quality, public amenity and the recreational value of the woodland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46234/26]

Liam Quaide

Ceist:

154. Deputy Liam Quaide asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether alternatives to clear-felling, including selective thinning, continuous-cover forestry, phased felling, retention of mixed/native woodland and enhanced riparian buffers, were assessed in respect of any felling licence at Curragh Wood, Midleton, County Cork; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46235/26]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (Deputy Niall Collins)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 151, 152, 153 and 154 together.

I propose to take questions 46232/26, 46233/26, 46234/26, and 46235/26 together.

There are several live felling licences relating to Curragh Wood, Midleton, County Cork in the period 2024 to date in 2026. There are currently no licences under appeal for this area. The contract numbers for these licences are as follows:

Contract number	Applicant	Application date	Decision date	Area (Ha)	Felling type	Expiry date	Appeal status
CK14-FL0101	Coillte	14/12/2018	24/1/2019	3.81	Thinning	31/12/2028	Not under appeal
CK14-FL0109	Coillte	14/12/2018	24/01/2019	0.93	Thinning	31/12/2028	Not under appeal
CK14-FL0200	Coillte	11/10/2023	19/04/2024	4.94	Clearfell	31/12/2029	Not under appeal
CK14-FL0175	Coillte	13/07/2022	17/11/2022	5	Clearfell	31/12/2030	Not under appeal

Felling licences CK14-FL0101 and CK14-FL0109 were issued prior to the launch of the Departments Felling Licence Viewer (FLV) in January 2021. Relevant documents, including maps, species composition, licence conditions, maps and other documents are therefore provided in the supporting documents. Please note there are no replanting obligations for a thinning felling licence.

Regarding contract numbers CK14-FL0200 and CK14-FL0175, the details for these licence applications and supporting documents are on the FLV. The FLV is available on the Department website at the following link: flv.apps.services.agriculture.gov.ie/

Prior to issuing these licences the Department completed a full environmental assessment of these applications. This included appropriate assessment screening in accordance with S.I.477 of 2011 (as amended) and S.I.191 of 2017 (as amended). Clearfelling and thinning operations do not involve an activity or project that falls within the specified categories of forestry activities or projects subject to the requirements of the EIA Directive.

These felling licences are already subject to a requirement for the applicant to notify the Department as to when operations shall commence on these sites. The Department applies a risk analysis approach to selecting sites for harvesting inspections and given the environmental sensitivities in this area it is likely that one or more of these sites will be inspected.

The Department assesses the felling applications it receives on the basis of how the applicant wants to proceed with regards to the management of their forest property. The Department takes into account the environmental sensitivities of the site and makes a determination based on the application it receives as to whether or not there are any potential adverse effects on the site in relation to the proposed development either on its own or in combination with any other developments in the vicinity. The licence is only granted when these concerns have been fully addressed and there is no risk to the environment. The decision of the Minister is therefore a decision as to whether or not the application submitted should be licensed, not whether an alternative proposal should proceed which may not represent the wishes of the applicant.

Application pack and maps pdf

AA screening form pdf

Licence pdf

Screening form pdf

Licence pdf

Application and maps pdf

Question No. 152 answered with Question No. 151.

Question No. 153 answered with Question No. 151.

Question No. 154 answered with Question No. 151.

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