Murvagh 79 hectare tree felling licence - ask questions and have your say

A public meeting which includes a visit to the planned tree felling / dune restoration project site at Murvagh is taking place this weekend.

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And a group of concerned individuals who have come together to appeal to Coillte to place a stay on the project are encouraging people to attend the meeting and inform themselves of the scale and impact of the felling plans.

After delays last year, a felling licence was granted but work was put on hold due to an appeal being lodged through the Forest Appeals Committee.

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The Life Insular Project is in essence a dune restoration project which involves the felling of 11 hectares of forestry. This is plantation conifer-style forestry which was planted around 70 years ago. Over the decades, the area has evolved into a woodland with a rich diversity of flora and fauna.

A spokesperson for the group who are raising concerns said: “A large proportion of the plantation was declared a biodiversity site in the mid-1990s. The fact that Coillte designated much of the former plantation as a biodiversity area would imply ‘leave it alone as it is a thriving species-rich habitat with legally protected rare species.’”

Another concern raised by the group relates to the scale of the felling area, which they say equates to approximately nine football pitches.

A further major concern is the impact of the dune restoration project on the wider area which is  naturally transitioning into woodlands.

“The removal of the leading edge of Corsican Pines will quite possibly have serious consequences for Murvagh Woods,” say the group. “The Corsical Pines have provided both shelter and a transitional zone for the developing woodlands. There is also a possible increased wind-blow risk for the commercial crops on the leeward side of Murvagh Woods.”

The group has also expressed serious reservations as to how much thought was given to the long-term viability of the dune habitat restoration proposal. They are also questioning how much aftercare will be given, considering that no effective effort has previously been made to protect the sand-dune system.

“The non-removal of stumps, as one example, implies that the pH of the new soil will always differ from the open Marram grass to the western side of the public access road,” said the spokesperson. 

“None of our group members were given any information on aftercare. How is it proposed to control the recolonisation by bracken and brian and new colonisation of non-native species, such as sycamore?”

The group points out that no account is taken of solid stability of the newly-exposed sub layer once the top layer is removed, and the absence of details of how and where the humus layer to be removed will be disposed. No reply has been given to the group on this question.

Furthermore, they have not received replies relating to CO2, including how much is stored in the proposed area of forestry, how much will be released due to tree felling and removing the top layer of soil, and what amount will be absorbed in restored dunes in comparison with the existing plantation.

While acknowledging that dune restoration is certainly laudable, the group is proposing an alternative site north of the public car park. This is an area of soft grass and would not involve largescale felling of woodland.

The group also wishes to draw attention to the fact that while the Life Insular project involves 11 hectares, in November 2024 Coillte obtained a felling licence for 79.6 hectares of forestry at Murvagh Lower and Murvagh Upper Glebe. Full details of the felling licence application can be viewed here

The public meeting on the Life Insular project takes place in St Brigid’s Community Centre, Ballintra on Saturday, March 8 at 10am, including a site visit to Murvagh at 11am. Members of Coillte, Coillte Nature and the National Parks and Wildlife Service will be in attendance.  

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