EPA - Ireland's Environment 2016 - An Assessment

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Ireland’s Environment – An Assessment 2016 118
National Forest Review Policy
Forestry growth under a number of strategies is likely.
The Forestry Act 2014, once enacted, will support the
development and management of sustainable forest
management practices (Oireachtas, 2014). The National
Forest Policy Review identifies climate change mitigation,
along with sustainable increases in wood production and
contribution to renewable energy source production as key
drivers of continued afforestation.
The National Peatland Strategy reports that afforestation
of unenclosed lands (mostly comprising peaty soils) peaked
in 1995 with over 6000 ha planted. Since then the trend
has decreased significantly, with approximately 100 ha of
unenclosed lands planted in 2013. Coillte has contributed in
restoring approximately 3250 ha of peatland habitat up to
2015, through initiatives including co-funded EU LIFE projects.
In 2010, the Forestry Commission of Scotland advocated
forest “zoning” mapping when preparing forestry and
woodland strategies. This mapping highlighted the
most environmentally favourable areas for afforestation.
A similar approach in Ireland may be beneficial to maximise
environmental and economic benefits. Work undertaken
by both the Forest Service, through its Forest Inventory
Production System (FIPS) and the EPA, through its WFD
characterisation work, could assist in identifying these areas.
The aforementioned national land cover mapping initiative
would also provide information that would help with this.
Research
Investment in research will provide information about
the interactions between soil protection and wider
environmental protection.
The EPA research programme funds research that informs
land and soil policy development and implementation,
enforcement and sustainable use. The range of projects
funded includes desk and medium-scale studies,
scholarships and fellowships. A number of key significant
soil and land use-related research projects are listed below:
n LANDMARK Project: a pan-European project seeking to
unearth pathways to sustainable land management
n H2020 INSPIRATION:2 integrated spatial planning, land
use and soil management research action project (EC,
ongoing)
n Irish Soil Information System Project (EPA, 2014b)
n Towards Landcover Accounting and Monitoring
Research Project3
n Soil Status and Protection Research Project4
2
3
4
n Soil Contamination Guidance (EPA, 2013)
n Carbon Restore: assessing the carbon restoration
potential of Irish peatlands (EPA, 2012)
n BOGLAND: Sustainable Management of Peatlands in
Ireland (EPA, 2011)
n HYDROFOR Project: ecological quality impacts of forest
operations on water (EPA, 2014e)
n Potential Threats to Soil Biodiversity in Europe (JRC, 2016)
n The Direct and Indirect Impacts of EU Policies on Land
(EEA, 2016).
Conclusion and
Future Challenges
Soils, land cover and landscapes are resources that
need to be protected, monitored and managed.
Soils, land cover and landscapes are resources that need
to be protected, monitored and managed, from high-
level national and sectoral land use plans through to
local management activities on farms, forest plantations,
peatlands, urban and rural settlements. We must also
support continued collaborative research to inform
decision making that may affect soils, land use and
landscapes. Ireland has a rich and productive soil resource
that supports significant food production and other social,
economic and environmental uses, and it is important that
we protect this precious resource for future generations.
In the absence of an EU Soils Directive and associated
national soil legislation, the challenge remains to ensure a
consistent approach to protecting and managing our limited
soil resource, in the context of supporting environmentally
sustainable economic and population growth.
Establishing and implementing an integrated national
land cover, land use and habitat mapping programme
is essential to assist in reporting and assessing the
impact of different land cover and land use types on the
environment. Providing a single agency with a mandate to
develop this programme would help streamline its delivery.
It will also be necessary to secure cross-organisational and
governmental funding to support its implementation.
It is useful to quote again the European Environment
Agency advice that “compact urban development and
resource efficient approaches to the built-environment
can provide opportunities to alleviating environmental
pressures and enhance human wellbeing and also protect
from the impacts of climate change” (EEA, 2015). The
challenge is to design a future urban environment with
public appeal that incorporates climate-proofing aspects,
along with green areas and wild spaces for wildlife and
people, while also meeting the needs of the population.