Diarmuid Wilson (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Áine Brady.

Dominic Hannigan (Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I welcome the Minister of State and thank the Cathaoirleach for allowing me to raise this issue. I seek the introduction of regulations requiring that all timber used in Government, semi-State and local authority procurement contracts is sourced from certifiably sustainable timber producers. Both deforestation and illegal logging are having a major impact on climate change. While forests used to cover half the planet's land area, they now only cover 30% and this figure reduces annually. Some countries in particular are suffering heavily. In the last century, the forested area of Ghana, Africa, dwindled from 8 million hectares, which is approximately the size of Ireland, to 1.2 million hectares, which is slightly bigger than County Cork. As a result, one of the key ways to eat up carbon dioxide across the world is being lost. It is estimated that deforestation is responsible for approximately 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions, which constitutes a greater quantity of emissions than are produced by the transport sector.

Some countries in particular are experiencing significant amounts of illegal logging. In Bolivia, Peru and Cambodia, more than 80% of logging is illegal, which means there is a loss of Government revenue in respect of unpaid taxes at a local level. It is estimated that globally, approximately one quarter of imports from six key countries could be illegal. Given that Ireland is providing aid to many developing countries to improve the manner in which they manage their timber, it makes no sense if, at the same time, we import large amounts of illegal timber. This problem is being tackled in other countries. For instance, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, France and Denmark all have introduced public procurement policies specifying that only certified timber may be used.

We in Ireland are part of the problem. The Irish Government is the biggest purchaser of illegal timber products in the country and probably accounts for up to 20% of the timber used here. However, minor changes in regulations can have a big impact in practice. Were central Departments to purchase wood products that are known to be legal, not only would it set a good example to others, it also would reduce the scale of illegal imports. There are two ways in which one can verify that timber has been sourced legally, namely, forest certification schemes and voluntary partnership agreements. The Dutch and the British have undertaken market research studies on the impact of their changes to their public procurement policies and the studies from both countries showed that certified timber product imports have grown steadily and now account for approximately 50% of the timber on the market there. Moreover, experience from other EU countries also suggests no significant additional cost arises as a result of introducing such policies. The Government has been challenged previously on the use of illegal timber in a number of high-profile construction projects, including the Irish Aid visitor centre in Dublin. The World Wildlife Fund's annual report on governments suggests that Ireland has the worst record in respect of illegal logging within the European Union. Although the Office of Public Works has a general commitment to use sustainable timber, we must go further. We should copy the policies introduced by our European partners and I ask the Minister of State to make a statement on this matter.

Áine Brady (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I thank Senator Hannigan. The Government is fully committed to the protection of our planet's precious forest resources. Ecologically sustainable public procurement has a central role in ensuring that Ireland plays its part. I therefore sincerely thank the Senator for his question. I am delighted to have this opportunity to apprise the House of our actions with regard to the public procurement of wood and wood products. These initiatives will help ensure the utilisation of our forest resources in a cost-effective manner while also safeguarding them for the benefit of future generations.

In 2004, the European Union adopted two directives on public procurement, namely, directives 17 and 18 of 2004, for entities in the utilities and public sectors, respectively. These directives clarify the possibilities for public sector procurers to include environmental and social criteria in their tenders. In other words, the legislation already exists to enable green public procurement, GPP, not least for wood and wood products.

In response to the enhanced possibilities clarified by these directives, the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government advised local authorities in 2006 on environmental considerations in public infrastructure procurement. Local authorities planning such procurement were urged to consider how they can contribute to the protection of the environment and promote sustainable development, while also ensuring that best value for money is obtained in the award of contracts. The Department pointed out in this circular that a range of environmentally sustainable systems and materials are increasingly being incorporated into public capital projects. These include wood pellet boilers and materials such as timber frame windows certified from sustainable forest sources.

I should point out the limitations of the procurement role of the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. Since its establishment in 2002, the national public procurement policy unit of the Department of Finance has had overall responsibility for procurement modernisation. The Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government has worked with this unit chiefly in two respects, namely, in helping the procurement modernisation process with regard to local authorities and in advocating green public procurement more generally. In recent months, the establishment of the national public procurement operations unit is a highly welcome development. The Government has decided that this unit will be the mechanism to embed green public procurement principles deeply into our procurement practices. We have some distance to go before green procurement becomes as central to public procurement in Ireland as it is in some other member states. The national public procurement operations unit will be instrumental in making the necessary progress.

Recently, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Deputy Gormley, met the Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Deputy Mansergh, about the preparation of Ireland's first national action plan for green public procurement and agreed that a joint approach is preferable in its development. This is particularly the case in respect of the alignment of GPP principles with the promotion of green jobs and other elements of the Government's drive towards the smart economy. As work on the action plan progresses, the Government will of course incorporate the latest examples of best practice in respect of wood and wood products.

One such development is a new European Union regulation that will require timber traders operating in the EU market for the first time to operate due diligence systems to minimise the risk of trade in illegally sourced timber. This is being negotiated on Ireland's behalf by my colleague, the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. The GPP national action plan will reflect this EU legislative initiative promoting legal and sustainable timber products. More broadly, it is intended that the action plan will demonstrate and promote both the environmental and economic value of green purchasing of timber products across the Irish public sector.

Dominic Hannigan (Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I thank the Minister of State for her response. Can she provide the publication date for the action plan to which she referred?

Áine Brady (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I cannot. However, I will try to procure it for Senator Hannigan.

Dominic Hannigan (Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I thank the Minister of State.