No they're not. The government is allowing private companies purchase harvesting rights (lasting several decades). The title is wrong. There are however serious concerns about it, especially given the complete absence of competent regulation of any kind in Ireland of late.
Of course, "selling harvesting rights" doesn't exactly sound very good either.
Ok, maybe they won't end up covered with strip malls and tacky suburban subdivisions, but the thing most people like about forests is, well, the trees...