Land Use, Land-use Change and Forestry covers the following categories; Forest land, Cropland, Grassland, Wetlands, Settlements, Other land and Harvested Wood products.
This sector is a net source of carbon in all years. This result is determined largely by the CO2 emissions from Grassland and Wetlands, due to drainage of organic soils, offset somewhat by Forest Land, which acts as a major carbon sink. Harvested Wood Products are a sink of carbon for all years. The complex dynamics of land-use changes between categories and the relative contributions from biomass and soils lead to fluctuating estimates of sectoral emissions and removals. A dedicated Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) publication summarising recent changes is in preparation.
LULUCF historically has not been included in the published national emission totals unless explicitly stated but is reported in submissions to the EU and UN. It’s inclusion as a reported sector for the first time in the latest projections report reflects the inclusion of the LULUCF sector within scope of Ireland’s Carbon Budgets.
It is projected that the LULUCF sector will have net emissions by 2030 of 7.9 Mt CO2 eq, an increase of 99.4% compared to 2022, due largely to expected forest harvesting given the age of the forest estate.
In the WAM scenario, net emissions in 2030 are projected to be 4.9 Mt CO2 eq, an increase of 23% compared to 2022 with wetland and grassland rewetting and water-table management and increased afforestation rates playing a mitigation role counteracting the impact of expected forest harvesting.
Note: These pages present provisional 1990-2023 Inventory data (updated July 2024) and the EPA's latest 2023-2030 projections estimates (updated May 2024)
Land management has a key role in the response to climate change. Ireland has significant and healthy biosystems, including grassland, hedgerows and forests, which sequester or absorb carbon dioxide (CO2). Mineral soils and peat make up a large portion of Ireland’s land areas and have high carbon content.
In line with international reporting guidelines, Ireland estimates emissions and removals associated with the following land uses: Forest land, Cropland, Grassland, Wetlands, Settlements and Other land. Forest land currently plays a significant role as a carbon sink. Since 1990, Ireland’s forest area has expanded by approximately 300,000 ha. As these forests grow and mature, they represent an important CO2 sink and long-term carbon store in biomass and soil. However, low forest planting rates in recent years are a future risk in the terms of our national forest estate continuing to act as a significant carbon sink.
Agricultural land management practices can lead to both emissions and removals of GHGs associated both with biomass and soils. Based on best available data, the net impact of land management in agriculture is dominated by a significant emission of carbon dioxide due to the drainage and management of organic soils. Although the total area of grasslands on organic soils involved is relatively small, at approximately 330,000 ha (8% of the grassland area), the impact is large.
The management of peatlands is a particular concern with respect to potential for loss of carbon. Peat extraction and change of use of drained peatland to grassland or forestry leads to high rates of carbon loss. In general, land management should aim to preserve or enhance areas that have active carbon uptake in soils and biomass, and reduce or eliminate areas that are a source of carbon emissions. Such altered practices also yield benefits for ecosystem services and biodiversity.