Aim Native Pinus sylvestris became extirpated in Ireland, during a massive population decline experienced throughout Europe. It was extensively replanted in Ireland during the 18th century from Scottish stock. We test the hypothesis that P. sylvestris in Rockforest Co. Clare did not become extirpated during the P. sylvestris decline, and persisted to present day independent of 18th century plantations. Location Rockforest, Co. Clare in Ireland. Methods Fossil pollen was counted from a terrestrial core. Radiocarbon dates and age‐depth modelling was used to ascertain the core chronology. Loss‐on‐ignition was carried out to investigate sediment accumulation history. Pollen was also counted from moss polster pollen traps to explore the deposition of P. sylvestris pollen in the surrounding landscape. Historical maps were consulted to investigate the longevity of other nearby P. sylvestris populations. Results A continuous record of P. sylvestris is reported. The core extends through the last two millennia, and reports a clear decline of P. sylvestris at c. 1550 cal bp. The P. sylvestris pollen curve recovers quickly after the decline event and persists at high levels up until the present day. The loss‐on‐ignition data reveal a stable accumulation of sediment with no major erosion events. The moss polster pollen traps show the core site is a suitable location for collecting pollen from the Rockforest P. sylvestris population. Historical maps demonstrate that none of the other nearby P. sylvestris populations extends further back than plantations in the early 18th century. Main conclusions The population of P. sylvestris in Rockforest Co. Clare survived the regional P. sylvestris decline, recovered and persisted right up to the present day, independent of introduction by human agency. Hence, we identify this microrefugium population of native Irish stock outside of the current understanding of the native range for this tree species.

We investigate the temporal and spatial distribution of pine (Pinus sylvestris) stumps preserved in peat deposits to test whether their occurrence can be used as an indicator of climatic shifts to drier conditions. Radiocarbon dates of sub-fossil stumps were collected from the literature, along with environmental data throughout the island of Ireland. Data were analysed using non-parametric statistical techniques. There was no distinct geographical pattern observed in the distribution of pine stumps on bog surfaces. Tree ages ranged from 66 to 500 years with 85.7 % of these <300 years. Pines occurred on bogs from ca. 8500 to 500 cal a BP. The temporal distribution during the Holocene was characterized as a mid-Holocene peak in sites supporting pine, with two gaps either side of this peak. Our current understanding of past climate dynamics failed to explain this temporal distribution. The onset, mid-Holocene peak and cessation of bog sites supporting the presence of bog pines appears to be driven by changes in pine seed and bog surface area availability during the Holocene rather than changes in climate. We conclude that variability in the occurrence of Irish bog pines is not a valid climate proxy as factors other than climate influence their presence and thereby disrupt the climate signals.

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Negative emissions technologies (NETs) and their potential role in meeting emission targets is a rapidly growing and contentious area of climate change mitigation research. The literature ranges in scope from general reviews of NETs options to research and development through applied case studies. Within this field, a gap exists in the application of this growing body of research to the unique limitations and opportunities of a specific nation. Ireland is a small developed island nation in the EU with a unique emissions profile, as 32% of the total comes from agriculture due to the high number of cattle. In this study we aim to assess the potential capacity of terrestrial NETs options for Ireland and review the nation-specific context for their deployment. Despite the proportionally high representation of biochar and carbon capture and storage in the international NETs research, in an Irish context afforestation and bioenergy crops are much more established practices and could readily be considered in possible emission pathways that use NETs. Higher capacities were found for NETs options that are currently unavailable (direct air carbon capture and storage and bioenergy with carbon capture and storage), while options available to deploy at scale (afforestation, soil carbon management and biochar) have capacities limited by saturation of soil carbon stock and have higher risk of reversibility due to impermanence. Hence, while we estimate a reasonable technical capacity for NETs in Ireland, emission reduction remains the highest priority for feasibly meeting a Parisaligned carbon quota for Ireland.

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