Assessing the value of forestry to the Irish economy - An input-output approach

Input-output analysis was used to evaluate the total economic impact (i.e. the sum of the direct, indirect and induced impacts) of the forestry and wood products sectors on the Irish economy. The total impact of the forestry sector on a number of regional economies was also examined, as were the short-term economic consequences of an afforestation scenario. Only economic activity associated with timber production was considered, and externalities associated with the sector were not accounted for. The results show that in 2003, forestry produced a direct output of is an element of 255.4 million. For every eurc, of output from forestry, a further is an element of 0.85 of economic activity was generated, yielding a total output of is an element of 472.4 million and total employment level of 7182. The wood products sector generated a total output of is an element of 1.6 billion and a total employment level of 12.246. These estimates of the economic impact of the forestry and wood products sectors cannot be added due to an overlap in indirect and induced impacts. The gross total value of an afforestation programme amounting to 15,000 ha per annum over 5 years was shown to be is an element of 475.0 million. Accounting for the fact that almost all land currently afforested is in agriculture, the net total value of this afforestation programme ranged from is an element of 157.8 million to is an element of 340.4 million, depending on the farming system being replaced and whether stacking of direct payments to farmers under the Single Payment Scheme applies to the land being planted. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.