Legislation

Forestry in Ireland is a highly regulated activity that is subject to a wide range of domestic and EU legislation, and also international commitments, protocols and resolutions. Listed are the main acts, regulations, directives  and international commitments that Ireland has signed up to that concern forestry.

Primary legislation

• Environmental Protection Agency Act 1992
• Forestry Act 1946
• Forestry Act 1988
• Litter Pollution Acts 1997 to 2009
• Local Government (Water Pollution) Acts 1977-1990
• National Monuments Acts 1930-2004
• Occupiers Liability Act 1995
• Planning and Development Acts 2000 to 2011
• Roads Act 1993 to 2007
• Waste Management Acts 1996 to 2011
• Wildlife Acts 1976 and 2000

 Secondary legislation

• Forestry Act 1946 (Part IV) Regulations 1949 (S.I. No. 67 of 1949)
• European Communities Environmental Objectives (Surface Waters) Regulations 2009 (S.I. No. 272 of 2009)
• European Communities (Forest Consent and Assessment) Regulations 2010 (S.I. No 558 of 2010)
• European Communities (Aerial Fertilisation) (Forestry) Regulations 2012 (S.I. No 125 of 2012)
• Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction) Regulations 2006 (S.I. No. 504 of 2006)
• Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (General Application) Regulations 2007 (S.I. No. 299 of 2007)
• Planning and Development Regulations 2001 (S.I. No. 600 of 2001)

All of the above legislation can be accessed through the Irish Statute Book produced by the Office of the Attorney General.

EU Legislation

• Council Directive 66/404/EEC on the marketing of forest reproductive material.
• Council Directive 71/161/EEC on external quality standards for forest reproductive material marketed within the Community.
• Council Directive 77/93/EEC on protective measures against the introduction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products and against their spread within the Community.
• Council Directive 77/409/EEC on the conservation of wild birds.
• Council Directive 92/43/EEC on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora.
• Council Directive 1999/105/EC on the marketing of forest reproductive material.
• Directive 2000/60/EC establishing a framework for Community action in the field of water policy.
• Directive 2001/42/EC on the assessment of the effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment.
• Directive 2006/11/EC on pollution caused by certain dangerous substances discharged into the aquatic environment of the Community.
• Community Directive 2011/92/EU on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment.

International Commitment, Protocols and Resolutions

• OECD Scheme for the Control of Forest Reproductive Material moving in International Trade
• Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage (1972)
• United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (1972)
• Climate Change – UN Framework (1992)
• Kyoto Protocol (1997)
• Resolutions arising from the Ministerial Conferences on the Protection of Forests in Europe

Further information

Further information on legal aspects of forestry in Ireland can be found in the COFORD publications:

A Review of Legislation that Impacts on Irish Forestry by Barbara Maguire, 2001; and

Trees, Forests and the Law in Ireland by Damian McHugh and Gerhardt Gallagher, COFORD, 2005.