Ms Geraldine Corcoran:

We have tried to go public on this, because Coillte refuses to communicate. There is no transparency. The annual meetings did not take place. Coillte sent a pre-filled, tick-box form which required my signature. We were supposed to meet on an annual basis but we did not meet. I am locked out of my land. Coillte put a lock on my land. It never gave me a key. Coillte has it for 28 years and I have to climb the gate to get into my own land. Coillte also took some ash. It was supposed to destroy the root and now the roots are sprouting. They should have been destroyed and removed, but they are sprouting. There is no breakdown on the thinnings. My thinnings went. I told Coillte it was not to go in until it removed the roots. Coillte left some dead ash. It did thinnings in 2016; the machines were there. It took the ash that had symptoms of ash dieback, but it did not remove the dead ash in the fields. I got nothing. I did not get a report of what went. It wrapped, bathed and transported the ash to Medite in Clonmel, which Coillte owns. I have a partner. I was supposed to be involved in all of this, but I was not. I own 80% of the thinnings.

I told Coillte it was not to go in to do the second thinning in 2021. Coillte rang me in May to say it would do the second thinning. The dead ash had been there since 2016. Coillte had a grant and a felling licence to remove the ash, but never touched it. Coillte came back in 2021; I said it could not take thinnings unless it removed the dead ash. That was in May. Coillte went on to the land in September, without my knowledge. It did not contact me or my solicitor. It went on to the land and did the thinnings. When I rang the supervisor to find out why Coillte did not take the ash, he said Coillte had to do a commercial evaluation on the trees, to see what damage had been done. These trees were dead in 2016. That happened in September 2021. Coillte did a commercial evaluation and I got no word until the following July. It took Coillte that long. I got - again - a pre-ticked-box form, which asked for my signature to apply for a grant to remove my dead ash. The ash had been dead since 2016, when a grant had been given. Coillte was fully aided at that time to remove the ash and replant, but it did not do so. Thus, I did not sign the form. Coillte has not spoken to me. What will Coillte put in to replace the ash, when it takes it away? Whatever will be put in will take 40, 50 or 60 years to mature. My lease is up in 36 years. I cannot understand it. Coillte makes all the decisions and does not involve any partners.