Government approves Agriculture, Forestry and Seafood Climate Change Sectoral Adaptation Plan 2025
- Published on: 26 November 2025
- Last updated on: 26 November 2025
Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon TD, welcomed Government approval for the Agriculture, Forestry and Seafood Climate Change Sectoral Adaptation Plan 2025, marking a significant step in strengthening Ireland’s preparedness for the impacts of climate change.
Adaptation is the process of preparing for and responding to climate-related events such as flooding, rising temperatures, increased precipitation, fodder shortages, droughts and extreme storms, and this plan forms a core element of Ireland’s response under the National Adaptation Framework (2024).
Commenting on the publication of Sectoral Adaptation Plan 2025, Minister Heydon stated:
“Agriculture, forestry and the marine are at the forefront of climate impacts, and the events of recent years including Storm Éowyn and the challenge of avian influenza have shown the urgent need for climate resilient systems. Adaptation is about protecting livelihoods, safeguarding our natural resources, and ensuring that Ireland’s primary sectors can continue to thrive in a changing climate.”
The Adaptation Plan 2025 sets out the Department’s strategy to build resilience and reduce vulnerability to climate change across these sectors. It identifies the key climate risks facing primary production systems and outlines priority adaptation actions to protect livelihoods, support competitiveness and safeguard natural resources.
Recent extreme weather events have highlighted the urgency of advancing climate adaptation, including:
- Storm Éowyn: 26,000 ha of forestry damaged due to high winds and windthrow.
- Rising temperatures and heat stress: affecting animal welfare, productivity, and grass growth.
- Severe flooding events: impacting farmland, infrastructure, and transport networks.
- Prolonged droughts and fodder shortages: affecting crop yields, livestock health and productivity.
- Marine storms and rough seas: disrupting fishing operations and coastal infrastructure.
Primary producers are at the forefront of responding to the impacts of a changing climate, but climate adaptation is a shared responsibility across the entire agri-food chain. The adaptation plan sets out practical measures to support preparedness, including actions in soil and water management, forest diversification, animal and plant health, coastal protection and aquaculture adaptation.
For example, increases in extreme winds were identified as a hazard across all three sectors. In the agriculture sector, extreme winds could result in damage and loss of horticulture buildings and other infrastructure. Adaptive measures outlined in the plan include improved structural design of horticultural buildings, Government and EU funding programmes such as the Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) and the Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Schemes (TAMS) which provide funding for farmers to improve infrastructure, including measures to safeguard against extreme weather impacts and insurance mechanisms to help farmers financially safeguard against infrastructural damage due to extreme weather events.
Extreme winds can also damage forests and cause damage and loss of utility infrastructure. Key adaptive measures currently being implemented include forest management guidance, reforestation and afforestation initiatives, satellite monitoring and technology, as well as research and innovation in the areas of forestry resilience, soil stabilisation techniques and tree species suited to withstanding high winds.
Increased intensity of extreme wind and waves will also pose significant challenges to the seafood sector. To mitigate the risk to vessels, several adaptive measures and policy initiatives have already been put in place including the Irish Coast Guard Service, the National Marine Planning Framework, research and monitoring and weather and marine forecasting.
The Minister went on to say that:
“In addition to reducing emissions, we must ensure that our food production systems are resilient and capable of adapting to future climate risks. The actions outlined in this plan will help ensure that our sectors remain sustainable and competitive in the years ahead.
“The Agriculture, Forestry and Seafood Sectoral Adaptation Plan 2025 represents an important next step in building strong, sustainable and climate resilient sectors, well placed to meet the challenges and opportunities presented by our changing climate.”
The Adaptation Plan also highlights case studies illustrating how the sectors have already been affected by changing weather patterns and the measures being implemented to build resilience across rural and coastal communities including examining topics such as the impact of rising temperatures on the spread of disease, conservation, responding to changing wildfire risk, water quality and wave modelling and sea levels.
A copy of the Agriculture, Forestry and Seafood Climate Change Sectoral Adaptation Plan 2025 is available here Annex_1_-_Agriculture_Forestry_Seafood.pdf