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COILLTE HAS DECIDED not to proceed with the sale of 39 acres of forested land in Enniskerry, Co Wicklow following public criticism of the plans.
People Before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett today called the decision a “victory for people power” but said there needed to be “proper oversight” of plans for the sale of such land.
Last week in the Dáil, the Dun Laoghaire TD held up advertisement for the lands on the Dublin-Wicklow border, which were on sale for €250,000.
A public advertisement for the land describes it as being “agricultural land” that is “available immediately”
“We are getting net deforestation and the State forestry company, which is entrusted with being the steward of the public forest estate, is flogging off public forestry. That is utterly unacceptable,” Boyd Barrett had said last week.
In response, Taoiseach Micheál Martin had said that he would “seek responses from Coillte in respect of the issue”.
Speaking today, Boyd Barrett said that he has now been informed by Coillte that the sale would not be going ahead.
He told reporters that Coillte had been approached by an interested party over the lands, something he said was “in and of itself an extraordinary admission”.
He added that, despite the proposed sale being “at an advanced stage”, it will now not proceed.
The deputy shared an image of an email he received from Coillte confirming that that sale would not go ahead, with the State’s forestry custodian also outlining that this year it will acquire more land than it sells.
The correspondence from Coillte states:
As you highlighted, Coillte’s role is to manage the state forests on behalf of the people of Ireland. As part of this ongoing management, we regularly purchase new lands and forests and sell existing parts of the estate. This model is used by other state-owned forestry companies in Europe and is part of good forestry management. This year we expect to sell c150 hectares of land but at the same time will purchase c450 hectares of new lands and forests.In relation to these lands, we received an external enquiry and as part of the market and consultation process we have now made a decision not to continue with the sale.
Speaking in the Dáil this afternoon, Boyd Barrett said it was “a victory” that the sale would not go ahead but that should not be the end of the matter.
“The point I want to ask is, why was it that members of the public or indeed members the opposition had to point the government to the fact that the state forestry company was selling off a public amenity forest and there was no proper oversight of that,” he said.
In a statement, he added: “I was heartened at the public outcry at this proposed sale when I raised it in the Dáil and subsequently on social media. Once again people power wins out.”
In response to Boy Barrett’s Dáil comments, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said: “I am not in favour of the sale of forests at all, there can be local circumstances from time to time, local sports clubs looking for a bit of facilitation, or national bodies, but overall I’m not in favour of the sale of forests, I’m looking to grow more trees, we need to grow more trees, native trees in particular.”
Katie Melua won’t be too happy!
One environmentally useful feature of traffic in several Chinese cities is designated networks of cycle lanes, on which cyclists and people using battery-powered autobikes which can travel at speeds up to 30 kph make their way to and from work daily. The manufacture of autobikes has become quite a big industry in China. Owners plug in the easily removable batteries in their homes before retiring for the night. There is a lesson for Ireland and other car-clogged societies.
@Garreth Byrne: what’s that lesson? Keep the people so poor that they can’t afford cars?
@Jumperoo: No. Encourage active people from different income groups to go to work on battery bikes, and reduce air pollution. Vehicle traffic congestion has made the incidence of bronchial disorders and cancer too high for Chinese society to endure.
@Jumperoo: People don’t need a private car in cities where public bike share schemes and/or cycling infra exists..
As well as a good subway system…
So no need for a car unless you’re a cab driver or something…
@Dub_Right: my point is that bicycles have always been so widely used in China and other such places because over the years, most of the people couldn’t afford anything else. So unless you drive (no pun intended) us back to those levels too, you’re never going to compare like with like. How do you know, for example, that as the Chinese provide these facilities for bikes, they’re not actually thinking ‘wouldn’t it be great if we were all so much better off that we needed more facilities for cars instead’?
@Jumperoo: Chinese cities are in deep trouble with the level of air pollution and serious respiratory illness from road traffic pollution, single car use is not a solution and should be banned
I have every faith in the Chinese authorities in tandem with the state police quickly getting to grips with this insidious capitalist threat to public safety.
Let the anti cyclist brigade rants commence.
@samdithers:
George Hook is going to have a field day today.
@samdithers: Don’t mind if I do. Since my last comment about being a vulnerable pedestrian about two weeks ago, I have had several more near-misses and one scrape from cyclists
Living here in Beijing.. bikes are so easy to hire and abandon. Where I’m living you have to move them or step over them to stay on the footpath… given the madness of the driving, walking on the road is not an option!
Great initiative, lots more people in Beijing using bikes, lived here in 2002/3/4 and it was all bikes. Returned for three years in 2014 and it was all cars and electric scooters. This initiative is only up and running 6 months, it will take time but is a positive in what is a traffic congested city.
I was in China recently and I have a lot of respect for their respect of public property, these bikes for the most part are well looked after and not vandalised, they’re light and mobile and easily accessible. Our ones weight a tonne, have to be locked down at stations and still find their way into rivers. The problem is the Chinese have different manners to us, they will literally cycle straight into you, the idea that bikes go on the road and pedestrians on the footpaths is non existent and admittedly the wild driving on the roads make them an unsafe place for bikes. It’s a pity there’s no ideal solution but it’s frustrating having them cycle into you
could do with a few of the on the greenway…https://flic.kr/p/TBAKaG https://flic.kr/p/Ucvpnr
could do with a few of the on the greenway…..https://scontent-lht6-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/18581724_760820150756377_8424122381995439199_n.jpg?
have your say