Mick Barry (Cork North Central, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

I want to voice my strong opposition to the deal between Coillte and the UK-based asset management fund Gresham House. This is a deal which is bad for the environment, PAYE taxpayers and rural Ireland. Coillte will purchase and plant the land and manage the forest. Taxpayers' money will go into that. The asset management fund will put in cash, and will own all of the land and draw down millions in grants from the Government.

I am not at all surprised that Fianna Fáil is standing back and backing the deal, and has said there is nothing it can do and it will go ahead. Fine Gael does not surprise me either. I wish I could say that I was surprised at the Green Party in respect of this, but this is just another sell out on the Green Party's watch.

Reference has been made to the plantation of new forest. Can the Minister of State describe these as forests? It is not a million miles away from describing a golf course as a nature reserve. In the main, these will be the same type of forests that the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine said in 2020 were net carbon emitters because of the massive bias towards monoculture, trees being cut down far too young and harvesting practices. From a climate and environmental point of view, this is far from a good deal. It is a backwards step and I support the campaign and protest that is due to take place tomorrow.

I refer to Coillte's record on planting new forest. In 2021, 50 ha were planted. In 2022, 200 ha were planted. Let us compare that to what needs to be done. There is a target of 450,000 ha to be planted by 2050, with Coillte directly responsible for 100,000 ha of that. That would give the State 18% cover - in other words less than half of what is currently the EU average of 40%. The targets are too low and Coillte and the State are not coming within a million miles of the targets.

EU law is a barrier. The Government needs to challenge and, if necessary, break that law on these issues. If we are to reach our climate targets, the idea that we are boxed in and Coillte cannot direct State investment on this needs to be challenged. This deal needs to be abandoned. The mandate of Coillte needs to be changed and there needs to be a new and sustainable forestry model which moves away from Sitka spruce monoculture.

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