Michael McNamara (Clare, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome Mr. Moloney and wish him the best of luck. I agree with him that a dividend is more than cash. The dividend for tourism and related recreational activities has been relatively small. It is important and expanding and many local managers in Coillte do a lot of work in this area. Does Mr. Moloney think there is a problem in the way the dividend is calculated because the legislation provides that Coillte should pay a cash dividend but if it spends money on the development of tourism related activities and resources, that will not generate a huge income for Coillte but will generate one for the locality, whether the Cratloe hills over Limerick or the Wicklow hills? Does that need to be examined or has Mr. Moloney considered whether there might be an expansion of the tourism and recreation related activities?

The dividend of employment generally from the forestry sector in Ireland is pitifully small compared with other EU member states, given the amount of forestry in the country. There seems to be a much larger timber industry and forestry sector in other countries. Perhaps Mr. Moloney wishes to comment on this aspect. Forest management is a much more advanced craft - perhaps I should describe it as a skill or occupation - in countries such as Austria, which Mr. Moloney mentioned in the context of biomass.

Moving on to biomass Mr. Moloney stated there was a perception in Coillte that better value could be obtained in using those first thinnings in the manufacture of boards in the Medite plants, for example, than in burning it. I have no doubt that is true if Mr. Moloney says so and it would seem logical. Can Coillte absorb all the first thinnings into the Medite plants or is there a surplus? One of the difficulties has been supply contracts. Mr. Moloney is correct in pointing out that the financial incentives are probably not sufficient in this country to set up biomass plants, given the capital start-up costs. Beyond that there is a difficulty in securing supply. We had a discussion about securing supply and Coillte seeks to maximise the cash payment it gets for any crop on any given day so it will not want to tie itself up in long-term contracts. Anyone setting up or wishing to invest in a biomass plant will want security of supply for a number of years at least. Might Coillte be in a position to consider this, assuming that there is any surplus supply of thinnings?