Forestry review a 'sham'

national | environment | news report Saturday May 06, 2006 10:04 by Tony Lowes - Friends of the Irish Environment admin at friendsoftheirishenvironment dot net Allihies, Co. Cork 087 2176316

Coillte Teo exempt from legislation review

The Government's review of the forestry legislation was revealed at a meeting organised by the Department of Agriculture in Portlaoise on Thursday 4 May as excluding Coillte Teo., the 'State Forestry Board'. Coillte Teo. has as its principle objective a commercial remit while sustainable forestry requires equal weight to be given to social and environmental factors.

The environmental lobby group Friends of the Irish Environment [FIE] called the current review of the Forestry Acts a ‘sham’ after the 'Open Meeting'.

The 'Open Meeting's' attendance was restricted to those who had submitted in writing about the Forestry Acts from 1998 - 2006.

Representatives of the industry, the IFA, Local Authorities, Teagasc, and the National Parks and Wildlife Service, heard the Department admit that the 1988 Forestry Act which established Coillte Teo was not to be reviewed. Only the 1946 Act is to be redrafted.

The 1988 Act established Coillte Teo as the State Forestry Board and made its principal objective ‘to carry on the business of forestry on a commercial basis.’

‘We have promised the United Nations Forum on Forestry and the European Commission that we are going to practise ‘sustainable forestry’. But sustainable forestry requires equal consideration of social and environmental factors with commercial ones. We can not do this if the principle objective of Coillte Teo remains commercial.’

FIE’s Tony Lowes, who attended the meeting, warned that ‘a great many people around the country are going to be very very angry when they discover that this review is not going to address the issue of Coillte Teo.’