Forest Road Scheme

A forest road is extremely important for the accessibility to your forest especially for harvesting. This scheme provides funding for the construction of forest roads and associated infrastructure to provide access for management and harvesting.

As a member of the Forest Owner’s Co-Operative Society limited (FOCS) you will have expert advice and a professional forestry team to guide you through the forest road scheme process.

Forest Road Scheme Brief Overview

• Grants up to 100% of construction costs to a maximum rate of €40 per linear metre to a maximum of 25 metres per hectare.
• Special construction works may be funded on environmentally sensitive sites up to a maximum of €5000 per application or 50% of costs whichever is lower.
• Additional funding is available where significant additional stone is required to build a bell mouth where it is at least 2 metres below the surface of the existing public road.
• The first instalment amounts to 90% of the total grant while 20% of the forest must be thinned within three years of receiving the first instalment.
• Forest roads connecting to an existing forest road network in a public, state or private forest may be supported including the portion of the road outside the property where there is an agreement between the owners.

Forest Road Scheme operations eligibility

• Tree clearance
• Inceptor drains and Formation work
• Base course and surfacing
• Bell mouths and turntables
• Internal Turning junctions
• Culverts and Bridges

Criteria to meet before applying for the Forest Road Scheme

• 50% or greater of the forest area must be due to be harvested within the next three years. Joint applications may be extended up to 5 years.
• Ownership of the land on which the forest road is to be built.
• A felling licence will be required prior to starting construction on your forest road.

Best time to construct a forest road

• Harvest roads should ideally be built well in advance of the first thinning operation. This will allow the road to dry and to cope better with the extensive wear and tear of harvesting and timber haulage.
• For further information please contact a member of the Forest Owner’s Co-Operative Society limited (FOCS) team to discuss the best forest road construction option(s) for you.

The Application Process with the Forest Owner’s Co-Operative Society limited (FOCS)

• As a member of the FOCS you will be assigned a professional forestry team to assist and guide you throughout the whole process.
• The FOCS will assign a Registered Forester and a professional forestry team to prepare applications where the total road lengths specified in the application is less than 500 metres.
• The FOCS will obtain a qualified Civil Engineer or Engineering Surveyor to assist in the road applications where required.
• For applications with an area five hectares or greater the FOCS professional forestry team will assist with the preparation of a standard management which is required when applying.

Grant Rates (€/ha)

The fixed grant rate available for roads is as follows: