Background Notes

Introduction

The 2019 Forest Wood Removals release is based on data collected from the 2019 Roundwood Removals Survey conducted by the CSO. The survey was designed to capture information on roundwood removals from forests in Ireland. The 2020 survey commenced in August 2021.

Legal basis

The Roundwood Removals Survey is a compulsory survey conducted under the Statistics (Roundwood Removals Survey) Order 2021 (S.I. No. 112 of 2021) made under the Statistics Act, 1993.

Coverage

The survey was designed to collect data on roundwood and biomass removals from privately-owned forests in Ireland. The CSO Business Register was used to select the sample. Information from the Forest Service and from industry experts was used to ensure that all relevant enterprises were selected. The exclusion of publicly-owned forests from the survey was designed to simplify the questionnaire and to reduce the risk of double-counting of removals - this could occur if both contractors and the forest owners submitted data for the same removals. The CSO contacted the sole enterprise with publicly-owned forests and asked them to submit a separate return for removals from those forests. The survey did not collect data on wood removed directly by households or by farmers e.g. fuelwood for own use. Removals from farmer owned forests is within the scope of the survey but farmers do not generally undertake the removals themselves. Hence the data were collected from the enterprises undertaking those removals.

Data sources

The survey does not make use of any administrative data. The survey results were compared with previous estimates for 2015 to 2018 by the Forest Service area of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

Questionnaire

The questionnaire is available at: Roundwood Removals Survey Forms

The survey collects information on removals from privately-owned forests. Data were collected in tonnes, cubic metres, and thousand euro. The statutory instrument obliged enterprises to provide the CSO with data for 2019.

Definitions

Removals: This term includes all harvesting including thinnings and storm damage.

Quantity: The survey requested quantity of roundwood in tonnes overbark. It includes all roundwood removals during the calendar year including thinnings. Respondents were requested to report all weights at actual moisture content at the time of sale. Respondents were also requested to provide both tonnes and cubic metres if both were available.

Large sawlog: Roundwood with a top diameter of 20 cm or more and a typical length of between 3.7 and 7.3 metres. They are used for the manufacture of sawn timber largely for use by the construction industry.

Small sawlog (palletwood): Roundwood with a top diameter of 14-19 cm and a typical length of between 2.0 and 3.6 metres are classified as small sawlog (palletwood). It is suitable for use as packaging and for making garden furniture.

Stakewood: Roundwood with a top diameter of 7-13 cm and a typical length of between 1.5 and 1.9 metres should be classified as stakewood if it is to be used for stakes and fencing.

Pulpwood: Roundwood with a top diameter of 7-13 cm and with a length of around 3 metres. Pulpwood is used to produce pulp, door panels, particle board, oriented strand board (OSB), medium-density fibreboard (MDF), and other fibreboard. Pulpwood that has been converted to woodchip onsite were included in the Woodchip category.

Fuelwood: Wood removals sold for firewood. This category includes removals under the Forestry for Fibre scheme if the roundwood was removed to be used as fuelwood.

Roundwood purchased for use as biomass: All roundwood removals for energy biomass use were included in this category. If the roundwood was chipped at the forest then it was included under Woodchip. This category includes removals under the Forestry for Fibre scheme if the roundwood was removed to be used as biomass.

Woodchip: Pulpwood and other woody material that has been converted to woodchip at the forest. This category includes removals under the Forestry for Fibre scheme if the roundwood was chipped onsite.

Short rotation coppice: SRC is wood grown for energy purposes e.g. willow.

Other woody material: This category includes brash (lop and top) and tree stumps.

Standing timber value: The standing timber or stumpage value is the gross amount received by the forest owner excluding VAT. Respondents were requested not to adjust this value to account for harvesting, extraction, transportation, and other costs.

Imputation

The survey statutory instrument obliged enterprises in the sample to provide a return in respect of 2019. The CSO asked enterprises that submitted 2019 data to provide us with 2015 to 2018 figures on a voluntary basis. The CSO used the 2019 returns to estimate 2015 to 2018 for enterprises that did not provide those years on a voluntary basis. Account was taken of the overall increasing trend in removals when estimating returns for 2015 to 2018. There were some enterprises that did not provide 2019 figures to the CSO but that were thought to be active. The CSO submitted estimated data for those enterprises for 2015 to 2019.

Enterprises were asked to provide figures in tonnes, cubic metres, and the standing timber value of removals. Most enterprises provided tonnes and the larger enterprises provided cubic metres and standing timber value. The CSO estimated any missing data using completed data from privately-owned forests. The CSO allowed a range from 1.0 to 1.21 cubic metres per tonne. Returns below or above these ratios were corrected to the lower or upper limit.

Weighting

The returns were not weighted. The CSO made estimates for active enterprises that did not submit a return.

Revisions

All data are subject to revision. The revisions will mainly arise from replacing CSO estimates with actual data or from enterprises that are not included in these results subsequently providing figures.

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