Billy Lawless (Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State is very welcome. It is an issue very close to my heart. I was very involved in forestry in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Coming from a dairying background, which I did in the 1960s and 1970s, I know forestry is an extension of farming. At that stage, massive incentives were given by the Irish Government in conjunction with the European Union to incentivise people like me to invest in private forestry. I jumped at the chance because at that stage 75% of the funding was given by Europe to increase the acreage. One of the things that disappointed me in the report is that the percentage of land used for forestry is one of the lowest in Europe. We have the highest rate for tree growing in the world in Ireland with all of our rain and the climate we have.

In the 1980s I had about 1,000 acres which I planted in the Pettigo area. The grant that was available afforded me the opportunity to do so. I bought the land, which was land on which, as we say in the west of Ireland, one would not raise a snipe. It was no good for broadleaves either. Broadleaves need good land. It was mainly spruces and pines, which are fast growing and have huge value. Coillte has been the backbone of this country for years and was hugely helpful to the private sector. It was helpful to me in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

It is necessary to fence off forest because there are a lot of wild deer in the wilds and once the top is taken off the leader, it is gone. That is why we need protection. Deer love the leaves of the broadleaves so they have to be kept out. Many people think it is only a case of planting the trees and forgetting about them, but that is not so. There is a lot of husbandry involved in the forestry industry. The land has to be drained, ploughed or mounded, which is the best method for planting, so that the trees have more stability.

A number of us who were involved in the private sector at that stage brought a helicopter over from Scotland to fertilise the land. It was accurate. That was back in the late 1980s. It was in its infancy at the time. I am sure it has come on in leaps and bounds since then. The scheme under the European Union and Irish Government at that time was free of capital gains tax, which is an incentive. I got out of it because I was moving all my business to the United States. I was able to get out and at a good time. It was a capital gains tax free scheme. It was a huge incentive. I do not know what the incentives are now because I have not kept up to date with it.

It created employment for local people. Much forestry is in poorer areas because the land used is poor. Most people there were on the dole and their incomes were supplemented by planting and fertilising and by the husbandry involved in looking after forests. It is a residual industry. It has value apart from the resale value. There are thinnings and the forest is mature after 30 or 35 years. The second growth is the best growth because the nutrients are in the ground. There are massive benefits.

I am disappointed to hear today that we still have such low coverage. It went from 1% to 10% in 2012. I am sure it has increased again but it is not up as much as it should be. We have the best growing conditions in Europe for forestry. It is something we should look at much more closely. It is a massive natural asset and can create a lot of employment in poorer rural areas which is badly needed when all the jobs are going to big cities and towns. There are a lot of new rules about areas of scientific interest. I understand all that. The area was reduced. If a person had about 400 acres, it was necessary to split it into four different parts and plan for 100 acres or whatever. It has to be streamlined. I am sure it is. We should keep incentivising and get the private sector involved. The money is coming back again. The money is there and there is a lot of land. I understand why broadleaves are not increasing that much because the land has to be very good to grow broadleaves. Good land is used for other uses than trees, which is a long-term investment.

I welcome the Minister of State's interest. Forestry was good to me and I saw what it did for employment in the area. The recreational use of forestry for forest walks, for example, is becoming bigger. I had an old forester who guided me and helped me. He went to the forestry school at 17. He went out and planted land. He felled the same land he planted and he bought land. He had experience right through his whole life. He lived until he was 80. He was a fantastic guy. His name was Joe Hanahoe. He was an incredible man. He went through the whole forestry system and lived, talked and breathed forestry. Many forests in this country surround lakes and are covering them over. We have loads of trees in this country. It causes controversy sometimes with the locals because it is too cluttered. We should have breaks of 50 m in scenic areas where there is forestry. There should be a lovely view down into the lake. There are plenty of trees. We do not have to cover everything.

It is a fantastic industry and I miss it. I thank the Minister of State for his presentation today.