"FORESTS"
Coillte Teoranta is Ireland's leading forestry company which
was established under
the Forestry Act 1988 to manage State owned forests commercially.
We now own
440,000 hectares of forest land which are a vital national
economic, social and
environmental resource. We manage these forest resources in
accordance with
sustainable forest management principles. Coillte also operates
in a number
of businesses developed from our core forestry skills and
assets including Nurseries,
Wood Products, Farm Forestry Services and International Consulting.
Coillte is also
a 35% shareholder in Louisiana Pacific Coillte Ireland Ltd,
a joint venture with the
Louisiana Pacific Corporation of the United States. This company
manufactures
Oriented Strand Board for the European Market at its base in
Waterford, Ireland.
Managing our Forests This section includes information on our
approach to
sustainable forest management, our preparation for, and achievement
of FSC
certification. It also includes factual information on the
species we grow, the age
class distribution of our forests, the different forest types
we have and the kind of
work we conduct in our forests. Forests are not only
about trees and timber. They
are also places of great beauty and tranquillity which provide
a haven to which we
can all escape from the stresses of every day living. Coillte
has 11 Forest Parks
and provides recreational facilities at a further 150
locations around Ireland. Coillte
also operates an Open Forest Policy which means that
everyone is welcome to enjoy
our 438,000 hectares of forest land. Access to Coillte forests
means access to the
countryside and the network of forest roads and paths means
that areas which would
otherwise be out of reach can be reached by all. Coillte's forest land comprises
about 370,000 ha of productive conifer forests and some
90,000 ha. of broadleaf
forests, lakes, bogs and open mountain. About 8 million
visits are made to Coillte
forests every year. Why not come and see them for yourself ?
MANAGING OUR FORESTS :
This section includes information on Forest Facts, Forest
Operations,
and Forest Management Policies and Plans. Forest Facts
includes up
to date information on Coillte's forest resources at national and county
level. Forest operations includes descriptions of, and data on, principal
forest management operations undertaken by the company.
Forest management policies and plans explains the sustainable forest
management (SFM) principles in accordance with which Coillte manages
its forests, the company's policies on a range of forest management
issues, and management plans for the company's forests. It also explains
Coillte's position in relation to forest certification.
