Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 25 May 2023
65. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he intends to reform the mandate of Coillte, in line with the recommendations of a report (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25302/23]
View answerI welcome the opportunity to discuss Coillte's mandate and how it relates to the implementation of Government policy both as a commercial semi-state organisation and of course on our land-use and environmental priorities.
It is essential that its mandate continue to be flexible, multi-purpose and responsive to the issues of the day as part of a long-term land-use strategy. In my role as Minister, I am one of two shareholding Ministers in Coillte along with the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.
As a company, Coillte's role has evolved over time to reflect the company's important role in addressing the environmental, social and economic sustainability of the forestry sector and our rural economy. It was established under the 1988 Forestry Act to become custodian and manager of the national forest estate. The focus at that time was to put the estate in the charge of a company which would realise its potential and primarily support wood production. These are still important functions but much has changed since then both in terms of public policy but also in terms of Coillte's own activities and remit.
The current Programme for Government includes commitments to embark on an ambitious programme of afforestation on state-owned lands and to ensure that Coillte’s remit supports the delivery of climate change commitments and the protection of biodiversity. These commitments were outlined to Coillte in the last Shareholder Letter of Expectation issued by both myself and the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform in June last year. In it the company were specifically tasked with delivering actions which would help to achieve the goals outlined in the Climate Action Plan and the National Biodiversity Strategy.
I have published this letter since so that all interested stakeholders are aware of its contents and so that the mandate outlined is transparent to all. We further asked that Coillte continue to provide safe and sustainable public access to the nation's forest and that they invest in the creation of further recreational areas in support of local communities and tourism. The letter also highlighted the need for the company to be viable and to supply wood products to grow the bio-economy.
Coillte have responded to this in its new Strategic Vision. In this Vision, Coillte has indicated that its afforestation ambition is to enable the creation of 100,000 hectares of new forests by 2050 providing a carbon sink of 18 million tonnes of CO2. Coillte will also manage the existing forest estate to capture an additional 10 million tonnes of CO2 by 2050. It intends to increase the area of forest being managed primarily for nature from 20% to 50% in the long term, by enhancing and restoring biodiversity and planting new forests, half of which will be native woodlands.
Coillte now has a division, Coillte Nature, solely devoted to managing the delivery of nature and biodiversity initiatives within Coillte forests. These initiatives include planting native woodlands, restoring important biodiversity areas, regenerating urban forests for the benefit of people and nature, and rehabilitating ecosystem services on sensitive lands, such as peatlands. Today, 90,000 hectares of the forest estate is managed primarily for biodiversity.
I reiterate that the current legislation governing the mandate of Coillte together with Government policy along with Coillte’s own Strategy Vision, ensures that climate action and the protection and enhancement of biodiversity are integral to their role and operation. Our collective focus now should be on the achievement of these targets and I will continue to work intensively with Coillte on its achievement.
