"Coillte/Gresham House Forestry Deal Is Just The Thin Edge Of The Wedge" - Fiona Moran
Éirígí For A New Republic energy spokesperson, Fiona Moran, has slammed the recently announced partnership between Coillte and the British investment fund, Gresham House. Speaking from Athlone, Moran said,
"Coillte's deal with Gresham House must be seen as the thin edge of a wedge that could potentially see hundreds of thousands of hectares of Irish land being bought up by investment funds and other private profit-driven entities.
This first deal with Gresham House relates to 12,000 hectares of Irish land. There is no reason to believe that Coillte will not enter into additional similar agreements with Gresham House or other investment funds in the future. In fact the current funding model for Coillte makes additional deals almost inevitable.
It has been reported that Coillte will provide their expertise in forestry development while Gresham House will reap the financial rewards when the trees are harvested. And crucially, the investment fund will retain permanent ownership of the land.
There is a prevailing narrative that the private sector is the most efficient way to meet human needs, but as we can see with housing, healthcare and other vital services, those who seek profit above all else cannot provide what is necessary for people and the planet to survive and thrive. When extracting profit is the key motivating factor for any enterprise, all other factors assume secondary importance.
Vast single-species plantations of non-native species lack any meaningful biodiversity
In the case of forestry the profit motive will result in large plantations of the most profitable species, like Sitka spruce. These plantations of non-native tress contain very little biodiversity and are not conducive to our native plants and animals. But profit doesn’t care about biodiversity.
Similarly profit doesn’t care about human-driven climate change. The pressing need to plant large areas of new forestry to counteract climate change cannot be dependent on some investment manager in London releasing the funds to make it happen.
Given that over 50% of forestry in the Twenty-Six Counties is already privately-owned, handing over even more of it to the private sector will undermine plans to assist biodiversity in Irish woodlands and to reduce the impact of climate change.
Instead of assisting further profit-driven afforestation, Coillte should be focused on developing Irish woodlands and forests for the benefit of this and future generations of the Irish people - through ensuring that these woodlands and forests deliver for the economy, our native flora and fauna and the wider climate.
The Twenty-Six County state reported an exchequer surplus of €5 billion in 2022. A significant amount of this money could and should be used to directly invest in sustainable, publicly owned woodlands and forests.”
Other reading:
"Forestry Plans Shows The Potential Of State Ownership Of Natural Resources" - Brian Leeson
"Bring Ireland's Gas And Renewable Energy Into Public Ownership Now!" - Fiona Moran
UN Climate Report: Ireland Must End Its Reliance On Big Energy. And Fast.