Written Answers. - Natural Resources.
Pádraic McCormack
Question:
67
Mr. McCormack
asked the
Minister for the Marine
and Natural Resources the policy on natural resources and spin-off industries; and the policy, if any, to ensure that the maximum number of Irish workers are employed in this industry.
[23907/99]
State policy in relation to natural resources and spin off industry is as follows.
The policy in relation to oil and gas activities is to licence private enterprise to conduct exploration and production under terms which balance the interests of the State with those of private enterprise. It is the Government's responsibility to ensure that the activity is conducted in an effective and efficient manner, that operations are carried out in accordance with best practices, and that there is effective liaison with the industry.
It is Government policy to maximise the benefits to the national economy from exploration for, and production of, oil and gas resources, while ensuring that activities are conducted safely and with due regard to their impact on the environment and other land/sea users.
As I have said in reply to previous parliamentary questions, I have continually impressed on the Irish Offshore Operators' Association, and the individual operators, that Irish suppliers of goods and services and indeed Irish workers should be given opportunities to participate in such activities, and I will continue to do so. Indeed, at my suggestion a framework group, comprising my Department, ICTU, Enterprise Ireland, the Irish Offshore Operators' Association, the Irish Offshore Services Association and FÁS, was established late last year to discuss matters relating to the utilisation of Irish resources, services and manpower in the oil and gas industry.
Last week the Irish Offshore Operators' Association published a report detailing the contribution of the Irish oil and gas exploration and production operations to the Irish economy. The report identified direct expenditure on production operations of £9.3 million in 1998, resulting in a total contribution to the economy of £19.8 million and a full time equivalent employment of 387.
The association has also committed itself to a policy of giving full and fair opportunities to qualified and competitive suppliers of Irish goods and services, recommending a programme of action which will strengthen the opportunities for Irish suppliers to compete in the Irish offshore as well as internationally.
There are currently extant three State mining licences and 13 State mining leases. Many of these are small scale but the zinc-lead mines at Navan, County Meath, Galmoy, County Kilkenny and Lisheen, County Tipperary between them rank Ireland as the seventh largest world mining producer of zinc At Knocknacran, County Monaghan, the open cast quarry produces gypsum which is a major raw material in the manufacture of plasters, plasterboard and cement. The direct employment in these mines is over 1,000 with an estimated 3,600 in related indirect employment and the contribution to the Exchequer and local economy amounts to some £45 million per year in addition to the payroll.
I will continue to encourage further inward investment in exploration and mining in Ireland to ensure the economic development of our mineral resources, and so provide employment in the sector. My Department also responds to enquiries about locally available services by maintaining an inventory of service providers to the mining and prospecting sector and by putting individuals in contact with companies.
Government policy in relation to the forestry sector is set out in the strategic plan for the development of forestry in Ireland, "Growing for the Future", which was published in 1996.
The overall aim of the strategic plan is to develop forestry to a scale and in a manner which maximises its contribution to national economic and social well-being on a sustainable basis and which is compatible with the protection of the environment. It is anticipated that approx 11,000 jobs can be created in forestry in the period to 2020 if the programme set out on the plan is implemented.
