Irish minister calls for businesses to protect the country’s forests

A government minister in Ireland has emphasised the importance of protecting the country’s forests.

Mary Wallace, Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, spoke last week at the opening of the National Forestry Conference in Ireland. Delegates were told how businesses should join the campaign to protect Ireland’s woodland for “environmental, economic and social” reasons.

Wallace pointed out how recent changes to the Forest Environment Protection Scheme (FEPS) encourage and help businesses to protect local woodland environments.

She said: “These changes to FEPS should provide a welcome boost to our planting figures.

“The revised scheme has seen some changes, which will encourage the participation of holders of both smaller Rural Environment Protection Scheme (REPS) farms and larger REPS farms, who will find added incentive to plant under FEPS.”

Wallace strongly emphasised the importance of farmers, foresters and farm planners working together in the fight to sustain forests.

A government report published in Ireland recently said that forestry is moving up the agenda in Ireland as the country seeks to develop “sustainable economic, energy, environmental and climate change policies”.