IMPACT

IMPACT

Aims & Objectives

www.impactproject.eu

Climate change strategies in Ireland and Wales emphasise the roles of trees as carbon sinks and alternative energy sources.  However, these values will be compromised by insect pests that pose current and future threats to trees. 

IMPACT will assess climate change effects on trees and their pests, both native and exotic, and develop sustainable Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategies based on Biological Control Agents (BCAs).

Project Aims

  • Model effects of climate change on key pests to improve decision support to protect woody biomass for carbon sequestration and bioenergy in current and future woodlands in Ireland and Wales.
  • Provide specific pest risk profiling and assessment of pests posing the greatest current and future threats to tree growth and survival.
  • Develop monitoring tools for the early detection of established and new invasive pest species.
  • Develop sustainable IPM strategies based on BCAs and reduced insecticide use.
  • Establish a communication strategy to deliver findings to stakeholders and end users.
     

Budget

Partner Budget (€)
Forest Research Wales (Lead Partner) 369,809 491,748
National University of Ireland, Maynooth 366,483 490,696
Swansea University 297,883 400,567
Total 1,083,175 1,383,011

Location

Counties in Ireland where the project is carried out:

Kildare

Counties in Wales where the project is carried out:

Ceredigion, Swansea

Contacts

Name Address Email Tel:
Dr H F Evans - Forestry Commission National Office Rhodfa Padarn Llanbadarn Fawr Aberystwyth Ceredigion SY23 3UR WALES hugh.evans@forestry.gsi.gov.uk
Dr C Griffin - National University of Ireland Maynooth County Kildare IRELAND christine.griffin@nuim.ie
Prof T Butt - Biological Sciences Swansea University Singleton Park Swansea SA2 8PP WALES t.butt@swansea.ac.uk