Pitifully low level of tree planting in Wales is revealed

WALES planted just 80 hectares – slightly less than 200 acres – of new woodland last year, far less than is needed to help tackle climate change, says the forestry industry’s representative body Confor in its Senedd election manifesto.

Andrew Sowerby, chair of the Confor committee in Wales, said: “There is almost total silence on tree planting in Wales in this election campaign – perhaps not surprising given the recent abysmal record.

“As well as only 80 hectares of new woodland being planted in 2019-20, little more than 1,000 hectares have been planted in the last five years.

“Compare this to Scotland, where 11,000 hectares of new woodland were planted in both 2018-19 and 2019-20. This matters because we need future wood supply to protect jobs in Welsh sawmills, and to provide the wood we need to build and fit out our homes in a sustainable way.”

Mr Sowerby, also the regional manager for Pryor & Rickett Silviculture, a company of chartered foresters and woodland consultants, said: “We hear lots of positive comments about tackling climate change, but planting trees and using wood can make a real impact – and nothing is happening.

“Planting trees and using wood delivers what is called the Triple-S impact: as trees grow, they sequester (or soak up) carbon dioxide. Wood products then store carbon dioxide, while using wood substitutes more carbon-heavy materials like concrete and steel.

“It’s positive that more money has been allocated for tree planting in Wales – and the number of applications shows that the demand is there to plant among farmers and landowners. But this is not working through into putting trees into the ground. Why?

“We need strong political leadership to make planting targets real, and we need processes that allow those who want to plant trees to do so without excessive delay or bureaucracy.

“We have the potential to do what Scotland has – turn forestry and wood processing into an industry which delivers £1bn annually into the economy, and employs thousands more people in our rural areas.”

Anthony Geddes, Confor’s national manager for Wales, where the body has 250 member companies, said: “The Climate Change Committee has proposed an additional 43,000 hectares of woodland creation in Wales by 2030 and 180,000 hectares by 2050.”