Sustainability
Coillte integrates sustainability into every aspect of its business, managing Ireland’s forests to support climate action, supply sustainable wood products, protect biodiversity, and provide valued recreational spaces for communities. Through responsible stewardship, Coillte delivers economic, social and environmental benefits for shareholders and stakeholders, while managing 30% of its estate for nature and biodiversity. The organisation continues to balance and deliver the multiple benefits of forests – for climate, nature, wood, and people – and works closely with stakeholders to ensure its activities remain aligned with its long-term vision of creating a sustainable future for all.
SUSTAINABILITY STRATEGY
Strategy Development
Since the establishment of Coillte’s integrated sustainability and climate related governance framework, the organisation has continued to strengthen its approach to managing environmental, social and governance (ESG) priorities. Sustainability is fully embedded across the Group through defined governance structures, divisional Green Teams, an active Group Sustainability Committee and regular Board engagement on emerging trends, risks and regulatory developments. During the year, Coillte advanced its sustainability ambition through a comprehensive Double Materiality Assessment aligned with the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), which identified the organisation’s most significant impacts, risks and opportunities. This updated analysis, together with continued progress on climate-related disclosures and the Climate Scenario Analysis completed in 2023, informed the sustainability strategy and reinforced the growing importance of resilience planning in the face of climate change. Coillte also maintained momentum on its climate commitments, including energy efficiency improvements, the ongoing enhancement of its ISO certified management systems and further development of carbon reduction pathways and divisional carbon budgets. Work continued to quantify Scope 3 emissions and prepare for future Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) requirements, while Circular Economy principles were advanced through ongoing resource efficiency initiatives. The organisation’s long-term forestry ambitions remained central to its sustainability journey. Progress was made on implementing Coillte’s strategic pillars – climate, nature, wood and people – supported by the ongoing development of Coillte’s Land Use Strategic Implementation Plan (LUSIP), which is focused on translating its long-term Forest Estate Strategic Land Use Plan (FESLUP) into concrete actions from 2026 onwards.
In 2025, the impact of Storm Éowyn significantly challenged the resilience of Ireland’s forests. Coillte responded swiftly to support national emergency e orts, safely reopen recreation sites and began the complex task of restoring impacted forest areas. The storm also underscored the climate risks identified in the Climate Scenario Analysis, highlighting the continued need for adaptive and climate resilient forest management. Throughout the year, Coillte continued to collaborate closely with communities, partners, government bodies and stakeholders to deliver shared objectives and support Ireland’s climate, biodiversity and societal goals. The organisation remains committed to responsible stewardship of the national forest estate and to creating a sustainable future for all.
Contribution to Sustainable Development
Coillte’s forestry strategic vision aims to sustainably balance and deliver multiple benefits from its forests across four strategic pillars: climate, nature, wood, and people. In 2024, Coillte made significant progress on its forestry strategic ambitions (as outlined in the ‘Strategy in Action’ section of this report on page 30).
In 2024 Coillte commenced the development of its Land Use Strategic Implementation Plan (LUSIP). The LUSIP translates the high-level ambitions and objectives outlined in Coillte’s Forest Estate Strategic Land Use Plan (FESLUP) 2023-2050 (published in 2023) into implementable and measurable actions over a 10-year period from 2026 to 2035. The primary purpose of the LUSIP is to bridge the gap between strategy and implementation, ensuring Coillte’s long-term vision for the forest estate is realised through specific initiatives and best practices in forestry.
