ENERGY CROPS, FORESTRY AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN IRELAND. ESRI General Research Series Paper No. 114, October 1983

The more than four-fold increases in real oil prices which occurred in the 1973-83 decade has combined with a perception that such supplies were susceptible to sudden interruption to result in greatly increased interest in the opportunities for providing indigenous energy supplies. Ireland’s climate and soils are ideal for tree growth. These two considerations -- energy price rises and suitability for tree growth -- led logically to a consideration of the question as to whether it could be to national advantage to grow wood energy crops in Ireland to meet some of our energy needs. Such crops typically comprise hardwood species such as willow, alder and poplar which are cut periodically, e.g., every 5 years, after which they resprout. Research on the biological potentials in this regard was initiated in Northern Ireland in 1973, and has been concentrated there on the wet mineral soils. In the Republic an extensive research programme started in 1976. Most attention has been devoted to the potential of the land remaining after Bord na M6na has extracted the peat -- the cutaway - but other site types have been examined and some harvesting and utilisation studies have also been initiated