by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
There is a “continuing role” for a national publicly-owed forest estate in England, the Independent Panel on Forestry, an independent, so the name suggests, panel set up in the wake of the Government's sell-off U-turn, has concluded.
In a progress report, the Independent Panel on Forestry says it is developing recommendations that will “increase the benefits generated from all forests in England”.
The Government put on hold a sale of 15% of the forest estate in February amid fury about the wider forestry privatization plans.
Bishop of Liverpool the Right Reverend James Jones, who chairs the panel, said: “Although our panel was born out of fierce debate over the future of the public forest estate, what has become apparent through our work so far is that we must look at the future of all woods and forests, not just the one-fifth managed by the Forestry Commission.
“Through the 42,000 responses to our call for views, the public expressed their passion for forests as a place of recreation, to connect with nature and as a vital source of resources.
“These responses, along with the many people we have met on our visits, have helped inform our report. For now, all of our work, especially in relation to the woods and forests outside of the public forest estate, needs further development in the run up to making recommendations in our final report next year.
“But, as ever, the panel are dedicated to further exploring these emerging themes.”
Widespread opposition to the plans to transfer ownership of public forests, currently managed by the Forestry Commission, to businesses, communities and charities forced the Government into a u-turn on the policy. Instead, Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman set up the independent forestry panel to advise ministers on England's woodlands.
Mary Creagh, shadow environment secretary, said: “Labour welcomes this thoughtful report from the Independent Panel on Forestry, which reflects the views of some 40,000 people and their heartfelt concern and affection for England's forests. Our forests are a precious reflection of our national heritage, and will play a pivotal role in the green economy and our low carbon future.”
Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman said: “I'd like to thank the Independent Panel for their ongoing hard work in shaping forestry policy in England and look forward to their full report next spring.”
Countryside champions, the Campaign to Protect Rural England, have welcomed the Forestry Panel’s progress report on their vision for the future of England’s forests but emphasize the need for stronger protection for trees in national planning policy.
Emma Marrington, Rural Policy Campaigner for CPRE, said: “We are pleased the Forestry Panel agrees that the benefits of woods and forests are greatly undervalued. The Government were wrong to see Forestry Commission land as just another asset to sell off. This report makes it crystal clear that the benefits provided by the public forest estate offer value for money.”
The final recommendations by the Independent Panel on Forestry, due in April 2012, will come at a vital time for the future of England’s countryside. The final National Planning Policy Framework is expected around the same time and if this is not greatly improved, it is likely to leave much of our countryside as an easy target for development.
Emma Marrington concluded: “The Government must listen to the Forestry Panel’s recommendations and ensure that a secure future if planned for the public forest estate. Our trees, woods and forests need to be more effectively protected, for the benefit of all, for generations to come.”
The way the campaign against the so-called sell-off presented the issue was that companies would buy the woods and forests, clear fell all the trees and then move one. That, however, would never have happened and, yes, I am speaking here with my hat a s professional and commercial forester firmly on my head.
No forestry company would ever even consider doing such a thing as the trees are the future of their business.
The Forestry Commission is not, necessarily, doing the greatest of job in managing (and protecting) the nation's woodlands and forests. Many privately owned and managed woods and forests are in a much healthier state and one that produces a much better return, including for the environment, than do many a Commission forest.
The Forestry Commission was not created, and this must be remembered, to be a custodian of our woods and forests, the majority which are and were then also privately owned and managed. It's task was to produce timber for the wars, especially building timber for a variety of uses including and especially the trenches.
However, what is urgently needed is to bring our woodlands and forests, private, and public, into proper use and production if the country is going to meet a number of targets.
The demand for carbon neutral fuel, in the form of wood, logs and pellets, is growing and traders are forced to source firewood from abroad, from as far away as Poland, Western Russia, the Ukraine, etc. This is not a sustainable way of going about it.
Our woodlands and forests, including the woodlands on Open Spaces and in Parks, could fulfill much if not indeed most of our needs, especially if managed properly by way of rotation coppice.
To get the fact that trees need to be cut down in order to be used as a resource and that it will actually benefit nature and wildlife if this is done in a proper way ever so often is something that seems to be very difficult to get into the heads of many self-proclaimed environmentalists and greenies.
Let's bring out woods and forests back to life and let's use the resource properly and, and this is very important, let's plant more community woods and forests for the purpose of using the wood.
© 2011
