An alliance of leading Irish environmental groups has criticised new national forestry standards being introduced by the Department of the Marine and Natural Resources.
The Irish Coalition for Sustainable Forestry yesterday claimed the new standards would be unlikely to reach the levels approved by an international body, the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), as they were environmentally unacceptable and would not promote the right species mix.
The group, which includes Voice, Earthwatch, An Taisce and Friends of the Irish Environment, expressed "grave disappointment" with the new standards announced by Mr Hugh Byrne, Minister of State at the Department.
"Ireland needs a strong national forest standard," said Ms Jacinta French, of Voice, which leads the coalition. "While we welcomed the initiative to develop standards and participated in the consultations, we regret that our comprehensive submission detailing our reservations and recommendations was not adequately considered in the final document."
According to Voice, certification by the FSC, which promotes environmentally-appropriate and socially and economically beneficial management of the world's forests, had become the key to the successful marketing of timber products globally.
"The Irish timber industry, including Coillte, requires certification by FSC or other internationally-acceptable certification systems to prosper in changing market conditions," Ms French said.
She claimed forests managed according to the new national forest standards were unlikely to reach the standards required by FSC, while they did not ensure the correct mix of hardwood and conifers.
"Future local and export markets for Irish timber may be jeopardised by the implementation of inadequate national forest standards," she said.