Senior representatives from Coillte, the semi-state company which is supporting the controversial Gresham House forestry fund, have today (Thursday, January 19) met with the Minister for Agriculture, Charlie McConalogue, and Minister of State Pippa Hackett.

The Department of Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) said Coillte updated the ministers “on the implementation of its strategic vision” and where it “sits” within the government’s proposed new €1.3 billion Forestry Programme.

The programme is subject to state-aid approval from the European Commission and has not yet been signed off by the commission.

In a statement issued following the meeting the ministers said:

“Coillte has a critical role to play in meeting our ambitious forestry plans. We heard today how the Irish Strategic Forestry Fund is one of a number of models Coillte will deploy in contributing to our overall forestry targets.

“There is also potential for Coillte to deliver new forests at scale on public land, and in this context we are encouraged by the progress Coillte is making in engaging with local authorities and state bodies to identify land that is already in public ownership and suitable for forestry.”

On the Dáil’s return from recess yesterday a number of TDs and backbenchers voiced their concerns about the Coillte-backed Gresham House “Irish Strategic Forestry Fund”.

The new forestry fund has already received a €25 million investment from the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) which is an Irish sovereign investment fund.

The Taoiseach also said he was aware of “concern up and down the country” in relation to Coillte and the Irish Strategic Forestry Fund.

“I confirm it was not signed off by Cabinet. Coillte is a state-owned enterprise and its board makes its own decisions. There was no memo for information to Cabinet at any point,” the Taoiseach told the Dáil.

According to the Tánaiste Coillte “will not sell out any existing publicly owned forests to the fund, nor will any other public body sell land to the fund”.

He told the Dáil today:

“Any land purchased by the fund will already be in private ownership and no private landowner will be forced to sell land to the fund.”

DAFM said Minister McConalogue and Minister Hackett had asked Coillte to update them on “the range of possible models” to deliver on its targets for new forest creation between now and 2050.

This included a “consideration of how Coillte can work more closely with farmers and local communities” according to DAFM.

The department also detailed that Coillte told ministers that that the Irish Strategic Forestry Fund will plant an average of 700 hectares of new forests across each of the next five years.

DAFM said the semi-state agency also detailed that the total area of new forests planted through the fund “will deliver roughly 3.5% of the 100,000 hectares of new forests Coillte has committed to enabling by 2050”.

“Of the state’s overall national target of 450,000 hectares of new forests by 2050, the fund will plant less than 1% of that total,” Coillte outlined to the ministers according to DAFM.

According to the Minister for Agriculture, “farmers will be central to the success of our overall forestry strategy”.

He said farmers would “have the biggest opportunity to deliver on our forestry targets, and to benefit from our forestry payments.” 

Minister McConalogue added:

“In addition to the Irish Strategic Forestry Fund, we have asked Coillte to consider the range of models it will use to deliver on its targets for new forest creation between now and 2050 including potentially working more closely with farmers or acquiring land directly in a way that supports the environment, the rural economy and farm family incomes.”

The Minister of State with responsibility for Forestry, Pippa Hackett, said the Irish Strategic Forestry Fund target to deliver 3,500 hectares of afforestation over five years, represented “a small yet important step towards achieving the nation’s afforestation target”.