Bonny Glen Wood Neighbourwood was officially opened yesterday in Portnoo by Donegal minister, Charlie McConalogue.
The Neighbourwood was developed as part of a scheme to open close-to-home woodland amenities for public use and enjoyment.
Bonny Glen Wood offers forest road and path trails around little Lough Bonnyglen and passes through a plantation of Sitka spruce. The peaceful lakes and woods attract a wide variety of wildlife.
The Neighbourwood project, which is a collaboration between Coillte and the Dolmen Centre in Portnoo, received Neighbourwood Scheme approval from the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine in April 2020.
Speaking at the opening, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine commended and thanked everyone who was instrumental in making the Neighbourwood a reality.
“I’d like to extend particular thanks to Martin Regan, the responsible Forestry Inspector at the time, all the volunteers involved in the Dolmen Centre, and also Coillte staff.
“It is of course not sufficient to just establish an amenity, but it also needs to be maintained on a regular basis. I am aware that the volunteers of the Dolmen Centre are very much involved with the upkeep of the Wood to ensure visitor experience is kept to a high standard and I think they deserve special thanks for their continuous commitment,” Minister McConalogue said.
“The Bonny Glen Wood Neighbourwood is an excellent example of collaboration between Coillte, and a local community and I hope that similar projects can be realised in many more places in this country. This Woodland will, under no doubt, further enhance the tourism facilities already in place in and around Portnoo.
“Funding for this project was provided under my Department’s Neighbourwood Scheme which formed part of the previous Forestry Programme. I am happy to be able to confirm that the successor Neighbourwood Scheme will be launched under the new Forestry Programme in the second half of this year. Similar to the previous scheme, this new scheme will include supports for establishing woodlands on greenfield sites, the development of existing sites, and for walkways, signage, and some recreational facilities,” he added.
“I think we can all agree that forests provide multiple benefits to our society. Not only do they contribute to air, soil, water quality, and provide timber, but they also provide quality accessible spaces for recreation, exercise, connecting with nature, promoting physical and mental health and well-being. They also allow for ample space for adventure and play which is very relevant to the younger generations present here today,” Minister McConalogue commented.
Pointing out that research published by the EPA has demonstrated that there are quantifiable physical, mental, social health and wellbeing benefits from green spaces such as forests, the Donegal minister added: “Recognising the important role that trees have on our environment and well-being, the new Forestry Programme includes several specific measures that aim at funding recreational and amenity forests. Forest Type 4 under the new Programme is specifically dedicated to the establishment of Neighbourwoods and will continue to provide financial assistance to create woodland amenities for local people,” he said.
“The new Forestry Programme for the period 2023-2027 was launched in September last year and is handsomely funded at €1.3 billion. This funding commitment is a strong message of support from the Government for all types of tree planting. The Programme was created in alignment with Ireland’s new Forest Strategy whose underlying vision focuses on the right tree in the right place for the right purpose and managed sustainably,” Minister McConalogue added.
