Plantation politics and discourse: Forests and property in upland Ireland.

This article explores the discursive, technical, and disciplinary mechanisms that frame plantation forests as the dominant model of forest expansion in upland Ireland. It is primarily through this frame that criticisms and local voices are solicited and interpreted. I argue that the dominance of the plantation model, the industry's integration with key environmental and economic goals, and full governmental support leave little room for a case‐by‐case examination of the model and its consequences. Plantations have the potential to shift the nature of private property and the relationship between farmer and field. This reworking of the property relationship is a significant alteration of a central rural feature that has received limited attention owing to the hegemony of current practices. Regardless of the benefits or faults of the plantation model, the dominance of official discourse is such that richer and more contextually dependent discussions are muted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]