Woodland type

The information recorded on woodland type shows that Northern Ireland's ancient and long-established woodland is now dominated by plantation. A third of woods that can be classified with any certaintly as ancient woods are conifer or mixed Plantations on Ancient Woodland Sites (PAWS):

• Surveyors recorded that 60.7 per cent of ancient and long-established woodland was plantation (broadleaved, conifer and mixed) and only 25.4 per cent was semi-natural woodland and scrub

• Conifer and mixed plantation covered 41.5 per cent of the surviving woodland on the inventory

• Of sites classified as Ancient (1 or 2), 173 hectares (31.8 per cent) are conifer or mixed plantation

• Of sites classified as Ancient (3), a further 570 hectares (27.8 per cent) are conifer or mixed plantation

• The survey identified 1066 hectares of wood pasture and parkland, 10.7 per cent of the woodland on the inventory

• A small percentage of woodland (2.7 per cent) was unsurveyed, mainly because landowners did not give permission for access.