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Hayes Highlights Importance of Wood Fuel
- 13 October 2015
Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine with special responsibility for forestry Mr. Tom Hayes, TD, recently stressed the increasing importance of the use of wood fuel from Ireland’s forests. The Minister was speaking at the opening of the Irish Bio Energy Association’s Wood Energy Conference in Laois. The Conference theme was ‘Market and Technical Focus’ and Minister Hayes later visited Laois Sawmills.
Minister of State Hayes commented that “last year’s total harvest reached a record level of 3.1 million cubic metres of timber and from the forest sector perspective, stimulating the use of wood fuels is a very good fit to the emerging roundwood resource in the private sector”
“Energy use accounted for over one third of the total harvest and this shows the very close linkages that there are between the wood products on the one side and forest-based biomass on the other” added Minister Hayes.
The Minister of State also drew attention to the current Forestry Programme 2014-2020, advising the attendance that “The Programme contains some ambitious targets, including provision for 44,000 hectares of new forests, which will help to sustain the production of forest-based biomass into the future. In addition, my Department is allocating funds to support 700 kilometres of new forest roads over the same period. Without forest roads, we will not be able to bring this valuable forest resource to market”.
Commending the work that the Irish Bioenergy Association has been doing in promoting the development of the wood energy sector in Ireland, he added “We need to use the scarce wood fuel resources we have in a considered way – and that means seeking, promoting and incentivising efficient uses that will enable us to meet renewable heat targets, and at the same time contribute to replacing fossil fuels which are the main culprit in climate change. It also makes sense to promote local uses of wood fuel to reduce transport and handling costs”.
There were a number of presentations given at the Conference on a range of topics, including Wood and Power Generation, Implementation of EU Timber Regulations in Ireland, and Quality assurance in wood.
Source: Envirocentre.ie - Hayes Highlights Importance of Wood Fuel
