Sir, – At the recent Green “think-in”, party leader Eamon Ryan was crowing at how successful the Greens are being in Government.
He forgot to mention that despite having a Green Minister of State for Land Use and Biodiversity (Pippa Hackett), the Irish forestry industry is on its knees, timber is being imported whilst our own mature trees are left standing due to lack of licences to fell.
As a result the price of timber has escalated, adding a reported €15,000 cost on the build of a house.
With this collapse in the industry, quite apart from climate change mitigation issues, where in 20 years’ time will we get the timber needed for house building, pallets and wood products?
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– Yours, etc,
GILL McCARTHY,
Shillelagh,
Co Wicklow.