Minister of State with responsibility for Forestry, Farm Safety and Horticulture, Niall Collins TD, has announced the publication of the Department’s Annual Forest Statistics Report for 2026.
Minister Collins said: “The Forest Statistics Ireland 2026 annual report brings together a wide range of information into one place to provide a detailed picture of the forest sector in Ireland. Today, Ireland’s forest stand at nearly 12% of our land area reflecting significant levels of afforestation over many decades. This publication is a comprehensive and vital resource to serve anyone interested in our forestry sector, from forest owners, stakeholders, policymakers, farmers, to researchers. I wish to congratulate my Department on producing this important publication again this year.”
The start of 2025 was marked by the severe wind damage suffered by Irish forests. It is estimated that 27,400 hectares were impacted by the storms and that 10 million cubic metres of timber volume were affected. As a result of salvage harvesting, roundwood removals have gone up by 18% from 4.4 million cubic metres in 2024 to 5.2 million cubic metres in 2025. Removals from privately-owned forests were 2.9 million cubic metres in 2025, accounting for 57% of the total removals volume.
Minister Collins added: “I recognise that the winter storms of 2024 and 2025 caused significant damage to forests around the country and that presented a real challenge to stakeholders in the forestry sector. I welcome the positive progress made by the forestry sector in the mobilisation of windblown material in forests. My Department will continue to work hard to support everyone affected by the storms and I would like to encourage those impacted to avail of the Reconstitution Scheme for Windblow.”
In 2025, 2,527 hectares of new forests were created, with the greatest afforestation taking place in Co. Roscommon with 335 hectares followed by Co. Cork with 276 hectares. Total expenditure on forest activities in 2025 was €79 million on maintenance grants, grants for forest road infrastructure, annual premium payments and including supports for the afforestation.
Speaking on afforestation, the Minister said: “Compared to 2024 the annual afforestation rate increased by nearly 1,000 hectares in 2025. I believe that the increased financial supports made available under the Forestry Programme 2023-2027 and the improvements in the efficiency of the licensing processes, has made this possible. The long-term nature of forestry provides an attractive and viable alternative for farmers and landowners across the country. I would therefore like to encourage landowners to incorporate forestry as part of their land holding and farm enterprise. It is also encouraging to see the percentage of broadleaves in new forests increasing which will be important in restoring Ireland’s native forests as part of Irelands Nature Restoration plans.”
Field data collection for the fifth National Forest Inventory, which plays a critical role in assessing the health, composition and extent of Ireland’s forest estate, commenced in 2026. This information will provide a timely update to the information last reported in 2022 and provide a solid basis to meet our national and international reporting requirements.
Ten key statistics from Forest Statistics – Ireland 2026 include:
