Mr. Francis Cassidy:

Gabhaim buíochas as an gcuireadh teacht isteach ar son na bpobal timpeall na hÉireann atá faoi bhrú leis an bhforaoiseacht.

I thank the Chairman and members of the committee for affording us this opportunity to make a presentation and talk about the communities in which we live and the pressures we are under regarding forestry and forestry policy in Ireland.

Forestry, in many areas, has a bad name, especially so in the area where I come from, which is west Cavan. It has resulted in the decline of farm families living in our area by falsely inflating the price of farmland, enabling investors to outbid local interests. The subsequent reduction in population has further deprived our rural villages of services and users. Our landscape has been irreparably blighted, not just by afforestation but also by clear-felling, which leaves vast tracts of our hillsides barren, in a manner similar to Armageddon.

Although some of the forestry is privately owned, a very small part is owned by people residing in the area. To the families of west Cavan, Leitrim, Kerry or Wicklow, it is no different whether the Sitka is owned by Coillte, a pension fund or a farmer from Cork. The daylight is blocked; the neighbour is gone. Absentee landlords are no advantage to the local economy. They pay no road tax or development levies on new builds or extensions. They employ no workers. It is lose-lose. The families who remain are often the last families on laneways that were planted on both sides, creating a tunnel effect. Isolation and light deprivation are well-known contributors to depression and social withdrawal.

We have provided the committee with a written submission in advance and we will be happy to talk at length about any issues members wish to raise.