Selling off Irelands forests - Read mod note post #2

booom

My last post was moved off to some farming section of boards and i'm not sure why. this issue of selling off woodland to private companies has direct implications for those of us who shoot on coillte land and those of us who shoot beside it. there is a petition to stop this sell-off to a swiss firm with bertie ahern as its chairman at http://www.woodlandleague.org/

johngalway

The thread was moved by me, as at first look at it it was unclear as to the reason it was posted in Shooting.

Previously, the topic of forests being sold off has resulted in certain accusations made by posters against certain named people in a certain political party.

Do not do that again, it'll get Boards, or someone of you sued, and won't be tolerated.

booom

pm sent

Birdnuts

I would strongly urge everyone with an interest in protecting large areas of prime hunting and general wildlife habitat in this country to sign the petition in the above link provided by boom. Also bring up the future of Coillte when canvassed by parties in the coming election!!

J. Ramone

Yet another world natural resource to fall prey to Bejings billions? I would view this fund as a serious threat to Ireland's forest resource.

meathshooter1

the coillte forestry should stay in Irish hands and its in every bodies interest whether they be hunters hill walkers,birdwatchers,Irish citizens,it belongs to the Irish people,a lot of people gave their lands to coillte for next to noting for the good of the nation or so they where told,its another case of selling off our natural resources like they did with corrib gas fields sweet deal for shell?

MacraPat

I had a look at the woodland league website there. If only the greens took up that approach while in government instead of becoming a nuisance to rural Ireland.

widespread

This is what the wbesite says, seems perfectly legit to me.


LAUNCH OF €100MILLION INTERNATIONAL FORESTRY FUND OFFERS INVESTORS HISTORICAL SAFETY OF INVESTMENT RETURN

The €100million International Forestry Fund, at its Dublin launch today, 6th May 2009. is an open-ended global asset backed fund projecting in excess of 7% compound growth per annum. The Fund is primarily targeted at pension fund trustees, pension and financial institutions and high net worth individuals. The promoters of the Fund, Helvetia Wealth, are a leading Swiss asset management company and have engaged the expertise of Ireland’s largest private forestry asset management company, IFS Asset Managers to manage the forestry assets.
The minimum investment in the International Forestry Fund is €100,000. Existing young forest plantations and bare land, which is suitable for afforestation and reforestation purposes, will be purchased primarily throughout Europe and in Central and South America. The forestry portfolio will incorporate diversified species, age classes, geographic locations and currencies.
IFS Asset Managers currently manage a portfolio of €90million of forestry assets and their strategy is to acquire and manage a productive global portfolio of forestry and land for the new International Forestry Fund. The land required in Ireland for the Fund amounts to approximately 8,000 acres which is almost equivalent to 5 times the size of Europe’s largest public park, the Phoenix Park which consists of 1,700 acres.

@$#$%$^% Director of the International Forestry Fund, commented at the launch “Forestry Investment is an historical stable asset backed investment. Private and Institutional commercial forestry investment, apart from providing a sustainable socially responsible eco-environmental balanced investment portfolio also offers a consistent return on investment. In the current global economic market this consistent return will now prove invaluable for institutional investors and for those who need an alternative pension vehicle”.

Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) is a broad based approach to investing that now encompasses an estimated $2.71 trillion out of $25.1 trillion in the U.S. investment market place today. In addition, there is a strong correlation between timber consumption and population growth and it is estimated that the world population will grow by 50% between 2000 and 2030 with global consumption of roundwood predicted to grow by 38% in the same period.

Forestry investment is a long-term investment and biological growth continues regardless of the state of the world economy. According to $%^^&%%$$$ co-founder and Chairman of Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo, the renowned Boston-based fund managers, forestry is the only low-risk, high-return asset there is: it has, he says “risen steadily in price for 200 years and has returned an average of 6.5% a year for the last century. It is also counter cyclical – it has been the only asset class in existence that has risen in three out of the four market collapses of the 20th century which is comforting in the current economic environment”.

IFS Asset Managers also announced details of the national Seventh Forestry Growth Plan Plc (7th FGP). 7th FGP is a tax efficient, asset backed €2.5million which requires a minimum investment of €750 projecting a 7.5% compound annual rate of return over its 12 year investment term and is open to Irish citizens only.

widespread

http://www.helvetia-wealth.com/the-international-forestry-fund-presents-to-the-china-investment-corporation,143.html

Sparks

widespread wrote: »

@$#$%$^% Director of the International Forestry Fund

Whatever about the Director, it's Bertie Ahern who'll be the Chairman...

Tabnabs

Pat Rabbitte raised this issue on Newstalk this morning and said it was nonsense to be selling off our forests. Assume it's the Labour view so, it would be worth asking when they come knocking and remembering on polling day.

ssl

I recon we should ask Jim Corr what he thinks about this. :D

Tackleberrywho

ssl wrote: »

I recon we should ask Jim Corr what he thinks about this. :D

Withdraw that remark sir :D:D

Or was that the Lord whateverhisface

terminator2

booom wrote: »

My last post was moved off to some farming section of boards and i'm not sure why. this issue of selling off woodland to private companies has direct implications for those of us who shoot on coillte land and those of us who shoot beside it. there is a petition to stop this sell-off to a swiss firm with bertie ahern as its chairman at http://www.woodlandleague.org/ .....................I posted a link on our gun club website today its in all our interests ,hope other gun clubs with websites will do the same

J. Ramone

widespread wrote: »

This is what the wbesite says, seems perfectly legit to me.

Nobody suggested there was anything sinister in the administration or motives of the fund. The fact is aside from a shallow pr slant, public recreation and biodiversity issues would not receive anywhere near the consideration that they would say under state management. If deer stalking for instance doesn't pay its way, it might make economic sense to eliminate deer herds as much as is practible. Would bird shooting licences to gun clubs be considered more hassle than they are worth? Scare mongering maybe but could shooting sports be considered bad pr by a future board of the fund?

If you read Coillte's policy on shooting sports you might consider it quite favourable in principle. Would such a policy be readily supported by the Chinese Treasury or an international pension fund. If profit maximisation were given greater weighting in the current management of state forestry, there would be a lot more sitka spruce planted to the detriment of other tree and shrub species. Sensitive harvesting, thinning and regeneration policy would also go out the window which would adversely affect game and wildlife.