§ Mr. JOHN O'CONNORasked the Vice-President of the Department of Agriculture (Ireland), if, in regard to the schemes of afforestation or instruction in forestry carried out by his Department, he will state the total area of land acquired by his Department since its inception; the total purchase price of same; the annual payments by way of rent, interest in lieu of rent, or annuity, in respect thereof; the annual payments in respect of rates, taxes, drainage, maintenance rates or 43W charges, and so forth; the area of land so acquired which has been planted; the total sum expended, so far, on fencing, clearing, draining, reclaiming, and planting; the annual cost of supervising, cleaning, and so forth; the species of trees with which the lands have been planted; the total loans and grants obtained from the Treasury, the Development Commissioners, or other sources in aid of afforestation work and the conditions governing same; the annual sums paid to the staff of the afforestation branch or other officials, whether engaged as whole or part time offices on afforestation work or work arising under Section 2 of the Irish Land Act, 1909, by way of salaries, allowances, travelling, and incidental expenses, since 1st January, 1908; the annual payments made to defray the expenses of the Avondale School of Forestry, the cost of the Chair of Forestry at the Royal College of Science, and particulars of any other payments made directly or indirectly to further the work of afforestation; the net sum now available for afforestation work; and the total income received, so far, from the sale of timber, grazing, and shooting lettings, and so forth?
§ Mr. T. W. RUSSELLThe total area of land acquired by the Department for forestry purposes to date is 14,858 acres and the total purchase price, including the timber on the lands acquired, amounts to £67,374, of which £36,507 is repayable by land purchase annuities. The payment in respect of these annuities or interest in lieu of rent at present amounts to £1,247 per annum. The lands in question are exempt from rating. A sum of about £570 per annum is paid as contribution to the local authorities in lieu of rates. Over 1,000 acres have been planted to date. The total amount expended by the Department from 1904 to the 31st December, 1914, on preliminary operations, planting and tending their forestry lands, including the cost of Avon-dale Forestry Station, is £39,318, being an average of £3,574 per annum. The lands have been planted with the species considered in each case to be the most suitable for the district. The greater part of the area has been planted with conifers, including a large proportion of larch, Douglas fir, and spruce.
A sum of £25,268 has been granted by the Treasury up to the year 1913–14, inclusive, in respect of woodlands being remnants of estates dealt with by the Estates 44W Commissioners acquired by the Department under the Land Purchase Acts; £19,267 has been advanced by way of loan from the Development Fund, for the purchase of land. An advance of £31,500 from the Development Fund, to be spread over fifty-two years, has been sanctioned for the planting and development of one of the areas acquired by means of the loan, and further advances amounting to £37,000 have been recommended by the Development Commissioners for planting the remaining areas, as well as Grants for certain central forestry staff.
Conditions Governing Advances from Parliamentary Vote.
- (a) Money to be expended in the purchase, by means of annuity, and development of woodlands and lands suitable for planting, but not so suitable for other purposes, forming part of estates which are being dealt with by the Estates Commissioners under the Land Acts of 1903 and 1909.
- (b) Receipts arising therefrom to be credited to the Treasury annually.
Conditions Governing Advances from Development Fund.
- (a) Advances for purchase are made by way of loan not repayable and bearing no interest for thirty years; the question of requiring interest and provision for repayment is to be further considered at the end of that period.
- (b) Save in very special circumstances not more is to be paid for land than its market value at the time of purchase.
- (c) The land is to be free of tenant right or other conditions that might prevent its being planted.
- (d) Following on the purchase of any area a scheme of management, i.e., a working plan is to be prepared prescribing for its treatment over the whole period necessary for the development of the area. Such a scheme to have regard not only to the area actually acquired at the moment, but to the extent of land which might become available in future in the same locality; the scheme of management so drawn up to be submitted for the consideration of the Development Commissioners at the time the application is sent in for the annual funds required for the planting and development of the land.
- (e) In the event of any portion of the land of property thereon being sold or leased, the Department is to forward to the Commissioners annually an account of the proceeds of such sale or lease.
45 - (f) The advances for the payment of the authorised staff and for the planting and development of the lands are made by way of Grant.
- (g) The receipts accruing annually from the lands are paid over to the Treasury for the credit of the Development Fund.
The reconsideration of certain of these conditions is at present a matter of correspondence between the Department and the Development Commissioners.
The salaries of officers of the Department's central staff (including the Professor of Forestry at the Royal College of Science) engaged exclusively on forestry work, including advice to private owners, etc., amount to £2,120 for the year 1914–15. It is not practicable to apportion the cost of the time devoted to the administration of forestry work by officers of the Department's central staff who are not employed exclusively in this work. Clause 2 of the Irish Land Act, 1909, does not impose any fluty on the Department's forestry staff. It is possible, however, the question has reference to Clause 32 of that Act, under which certain powers are conferred on the Department for dealing with tree felling on certain holdings. No special provision has been made for expenditure under this Clause, the administration of which is hampered by lack of funds. No officers have been specially engaged to deal with it. The work is carried out by the general staff.
The total expenditure upon planting, felling, reclamation, demonstration plots, instruction, etc., in connection with the Avondale School of Forestry and Estate, together with Ballyfad woods (exclusive of purchase price) since its institution in 1904 to 31st December, 1914, amounted to £22,649. The Chair of Forestry at the Royal College of Science, Dublin, involved an expenditure, including travelling and research, of £575 in the financial year 1913–14. No direct Grants in aid of afforestation are made by the Department. The Department have, however, assisted some local county schemes for the preservation of existing woodlands and the planting of shelter belts. No specific sum is available for afforestation. The cost of Avondale Forestry Station, including the Ballyfad woods, and the salaries and expenses of portion of the central forestry staff, are defrayed from the Department's Endowment Fund. A Vote of £6,000 is provided annually by Parliament for the purchase, management, and development of wood- 46W land areas, remnants of estates which have been dealt with by the Estates Commissioners. Advances up to a sum of £46,750 in all have been recommended by the Development Commissioners for the purchase of land for afforestation. It is contemplated that funds for the planting of these lands will be, provided from the Development Fund. The total receipts in respect of forestry operations up to the 31st December, 1914, amounted to £12,545. Of this sum, £9,022 was paid back to the Treasury.