Merlin Woods Restoration

For decades, Merlin Woods has been a mix of broadleaf and conifer trees and has been enjoyed by people and wildlife alike. Approximately 50% of the woodland is made up of Norway spruce, which were planted in the 1960s as a commercial plantation crop. The vast majority of these trees were severely damaged during Storm Eowyn.

It is worth noting that the areas least affected by Storm Eowyn are made up predominantly of native and broadleaf species, demonstrating the resilience of native woodland. Norway spruce is not a native species. 
 

The plan is in two stages
Stage 1 – Clearance of storm damages trees
•    Clear trees that have been damaged by Storm Eowyn
 

Stage 2 – Replanting with native species & restoration of the woods as public amenity
•    NeighbourWood Scheme application to the Department for funding for restoration works
•    Immediate planting post clearance to create corridors for wildlife
•    Planting the woodland with native species post award of funding

Objectives of the plan
•    To bring the woodland back into safe use by the public as an urban woodland 
•    To replant it as a native woodland under the NeighbourWood Scheme
•    To put in amenity features funded by the NeighbourWood Scheme
•    The plan includes retention of 
•    existing native and broadleaf trees
•    protection of limestone/karst habitats
•    protection of national monuments and built heritage
•    measures to limit the impact on stonewalls
 

The plan includes measures to minimise 
•    The impact on the wildlife 
•    The impact habitats
•    Planting immediately post clearance to create corridors for wildlife
•    A feeding programme for native squirrels prior to commencement

The total area of Merlin Woods is 33.41 hectares

18 hectares will be retained (that is 54% of existing trees)
4.34 hectares of the retained area is standing conifer Norway spruce.

15.41 hectares will be cleared. This area is comprised of fallen or damaged conifer trees which need to be cleared. There is full agreement from all stakeholders, including the Friends of Merlin Wooods, on the need to remove 80% of this area.

There is an area (circa 20%) that is mainly standing conifer trees, with some fallen trees. The stability of this area is compromised by the storm damaged trees to the south and north. Retaining the standing trees would present a high risk to the public using the nearby footpaths. The footpaths must remain open to the public who use them to get through the woodland.

Click on map links below to see areas to be felled and retained 

Tress to be Removed  
Trees to be retained  

Stage 1 of the project is the clearance of storm damages trees which is being carried out on a cost-neutral basis to the Council. This means that there will be no payment to the contractor for the work in harvesting the trees.
Stage 2 of the project is the replanting of the conifer areas with native species & restoration of the woods as public amenity. Funding will be sought for this through funding from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine through the NeighbourWood Scheme. This could include up to 85% of the costs. The reminder will need to be covered by other funding streams, and/or from the Council’s budgets.

For more information on the NeighbourWood Scheme fund please click here
 

In agreement with the Friends of Merlin Woods, expert advice regarding the impact on the red squirrel population was sought from University of Galway, Zoology Department, at an early stage in the project.

This advice informed the 

• areas of trees to be protected during clearance
• feeding measures for squirrels GCC can put in place immediately
• post clearance planting to support squirrel movement in the forest

The University of Galway Zoology Department has confirmed there are no official red squirrel population numbers for the area. However, the Council will continue to support the work of the University of Galway to monitor the squirrel population and will continue to seek their advice on how best to support the red squirrels.

The feed will be a mix of different types of nuts, based on advice from experts in the University of Galway Zoology Department.

Galway City Council’s outdoor biodiversity crew will be involved in the roll out the feeding programme in the short to medium term. It is hoped that when the feeding programme is established, under the guidance of the University of Galway, that volunteer groups will be interested in getting involved in the initiative. In that case, Council staff will continue to have a role and work with volunteers in a joint project to support the red squirrels in the long term.

Many of the trails and smaller paths in Merlin Woods have remained closed since Storm Eowyn in January 2025. The clearance of the fallen trees in the woodland will mean these paths can be reopened.  The main footpaths in the woods were cleared and opened as soon as possible after Storm Eowyn.

Site fencing is in place to protect the public during the restoration works. This means some of the main footpaths will be closed to the public from September to mid-December for Health & Safety reasons, while other footpaths remain open to the public.

The map below shows the footpaths which will remain open in Yellow. The footpaths that are closed during works are in Red. The Yellow paths will remain open to maintain access for local residents, including the school route. 

The Council has advised that continued and persistent damage to site fencing, and security measures could result in further restrictions, such as closing the park in its entirety, including access along the school route.

To strengthen site security, 24-hour security patrols will be introduced, and additional measures will be implemented to fully secure the construction area.

Members of the public are reminded that unauthorised entry to a construction site is illegal and presents significant health and safety risk to the public. Any breaches of site security or incidents of unauthorised access will be referred to the appropriate authorities.

Residents are asked to respect all closures and signage in place and to use only those routes that remain open while works continue.

Section 12 (3) of the National Monuments (Amendment) Act, 1994 and Section 5 (8) of the 1987 Act (Register of Historic Monuments) requires the Council to notify the National Monuments Service of any planned works within the vicinity of a recorded monument. 

As part of the stakeholder engagement process, a notification was submitted and the National Monuments Service and the Heritage Officer was notified. The National Monuments Service provided conditions for the protection recorded monuments, which have been included in the planned works. The recorded monuments are outside of the works area and are not impacted by the works in any way. No archaeological report was required.

Having further reviewed the project in accordance with the Council's statutory obligations the project is proceeding on the basis that no excavations will be undertaken during the works. 

In line with all works undertaken by the Council there will be cross-departmental engagement as works progress, and this will be the case for the works undertaken in Merlin Woods.