Sir, - Your correspondent Emmet Oliver writes (February 13th): "Coillte has more than £1 billion in land assets around the Republic but only managed to make pre-tax profits of £18.1 million last year," (my emphasis). That sentence shows a profound lack of awareness of the intrinsic nature of a forest enterprise. Since conifers take a minimum of 40-45 years to reach maturity (much longer in the case of the politically correct broadleaves) forestry cannot itself return a hefty short-term profit. Mr Oliver should instead examine the quantity and value of the downstream employment already generated by our forests, and the direct saving on imports.
It must also be remembered that our state forests were created as a long-term social benefit from hard-earned Irish taxes, up until about 1989 when Brussels began to chip in. Any proposed privatisation has to be viewed in that context. Further, the £1 billion valuation is entirely notional. How much would a willing buyer pay for the asset?
It is surprising that neither the state-owned Irish Forestry Board Ltd (Coillte Teo) nor the state Forest Service have troubled to make the public familiar with these basic facts. - Yours, etc., Niall O'Carroll
Mapas Road, Dalkey, Co Dublin.