The harvesting behaviour of Irish private forest owners

The Irish government has an ambitious plan to increase the forest cover in Ireland from 10% to 17% by the year 2030 and in doing so achieve a competitive scale of timber production. Substantial financial incentives are available to encourage landowners, especially farmers, to plant. To achieve the desired scale of timber production, the plan assumes that grant-funded forests will be managed and harvested in a similar way to State forests. This study set out to determine the objectives of private forest owners for their forests and to establish whether they planned to thin their stands. It also looked at the factors influencing a private forest owner's decision to harvest and the role that extension plays in this process. A survey of 120 private forest owners who had afforested land since 1980 was conducted in 2007. The study found that while most forest owners hoped to produce timber from their woods many of them either planned to use the timber themselves or were unsure as to whether they would put it on the market. Availing of extension activities significantly increased the likelihood that an owner would thin his/her stand. However, the study raised concerns as to whether owners were making the correct silvicultural decision regarding thinning.