Select Forestry - Is the Sitka Spruce a friend or foe?

Michael Sweeney, managing director at Select Forest Ltd, says that we need a viable planting programme in Ireland.

Is the Sitka spruce a friend or foe?

Irish sawmills require at least 2.7m cubic metres of sawlog material approx. Coillte currently supply in the region of 1.5m cubic metres therefore the balance of 1.2m cubic metres approx needs to be supplied by the private sector.

In 2022 roundwood purchases from private forests amounted to 880,000 cubic metres. In the same year Coillte sold 2,230,000 cubic metres. China is the biggest net importer of forest products followed by Britain, which imports about 80% of its wood products.

The UK uses approximately 10 million cubic metres of sawn softwood per year, but it cuts only about three million cubic metres, only a third of what it uses. Around 60% of the log will end up as sawn timber with the rest being chips and sawdust.

Recent years have seen an increasing campaign against Sitka spruce plantations, particularly when they are planted as a monoculture. Now each new plantation has to have a certain amount of broadleaves planted, and open space included, to satisfy environmental conditions.

There is a reason that Sitka spruce which is a non-native tree has been planted extensively in Ireland. The Irish climate and soil types are ideally suited to its growth.

It outperforms every other tree in terms of growth. It is a terrific tree, fast growing, easy to sawmill and continues to be in very high demand.

It is imperative that we have a viable planting programme each year. Despite attractive grants and premiums there has been an alarming drop in planting targets in Ireland in recent years. In 2023 the area of conifers planted was 753 ha. i.e. 46% and broadleaves 899 ha. i.e. 54%.

Forecasts show a significant drop off in the amount of timber being available in future years, and anybody thinking of building a new sawmill or expanding an existing one should think again.

There are all kinds of pressures that have moved us away from pure commercial forestry, some of which have been good but a lot not so good. It would be hard to justify some of the way things were planted in the 80s and 90s and to justify Sitka spruce. However, establishing a plantation today is totally different than back in those days.

Included now in each application is a whole range of environmental conditions. A net area of 65% of commercial Spruce is allowed with the remaining 35% allocated to broadleaves and open space.

Environmental conditions include:

• Is the area within a NHA, pNHA, SAC or SPA,
  A. Designated Habitats.
  B. Water Quality.
  C. Landscape.
  D. Archaeology.
• Is the area acid sensitive or sensitive for fisheries.
• Is the area in the County Development Plan.
• Does the area contain or adjoin an archaeological feature.

In spite of everything, Forestry, including Sitka spruce, remains a very good investment. Income from plantations managed on a commercial basis is exempt from Income Tax. Forests occupied by individuals are exempt from Capital Gains Tax but the underlying land is not.

Within the forest industry the vast majority would argue that timber production should always be the top priority. Sitka spruce is responsible for substantial income and employment in Rural Ireland.

Forest Windblow Task Force

At this critical time the Forest Industry is very fortunate to have Michael Healy Rea as Minister of State. Mr Healy-Rea has first-hand knowledge and experience of the ownership and management of plantation forestry.

As result of Storm Éowyn which has resulted in almost 26,000 hectares of windblown timber, the Minister has acted very quickly to establish the Forest Windblow Task Force including all stakeholders.

He has also guaranteed that those with felling licenses, either thinning or clearfell, can proceed with harvesting and replanting. This has allowed forest owners to proceed immediately and to retrieve and minimise some of their substantial loss.

Discussions are ongoing to provide realistic supports for those forest owners affected by Storm Éowyn.

The Minister has confirmed that any work undertaken will not be affected for any future assistance.

*Sponsored content