asked the Minister for Lands if, in view of the urgent need to provide employment in the areas concerned and the continuing serious depletion of Irish hardwood reserves, he will increase the amount of the afforestation area to 25,000 acres as promised in the Second Programme for Economic Expansion.
Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - Forestry Acreage.
65.
Provision is made in the Forestry Estimate for 1968-69 for the planting of 25,000 acres but it is not possible to say at this stage to what extent that programme will prove practicable.
My Department continues to plant hardwood species on suitable land coming into its possession but only a small percentage of such land is acquired annually.
Is it not true to say that there are 700 fewer persons at work in forestry than there were when the Second Programme began?
I have answered the question put to me by the Deputy.
May I ask the Minister, without getting cross, does he not realise that in the whole history of the country up to date the social structure of rural Ireland did result in the planting of a considerable amount of hardwood and it is hard to justify in modern conditions, on purely economic grounds, the planting of hardwood today and would he not consider directing the Forestry Division to give a preference to hardwood with due regard for reasonable economic considerations but not strict regard for the purely economic forestry considerations which ordinarily direct policy?
As the Deputy has said, it is not an economic proposition but the Department are planting a certain amount of hardwood and, as the Deputy is aware, it takes rather good agricultural land to grow this type of timber and the Forestry Division does not get very much of that type of land. However, there is a certain amount of this type of wood being planted by the Forestry Division.