Opportunity offered by golf course land

The 2021 United Nations Climate Conference begins October 31 in Glasgow.

This has reminded me of a scientific study, reported in the National Geographic (2019) which had the headline: “How to erase 100 years of carbon emissions?

Plant trees – lots of them.”

The senior author of the study stated that findings show clearly that forest restoration is the best climate change solution available today.

However, he also points out the vital importance of protecting existing forests and phasing out fossil fuels.

Maidenhead Golf Course presents a wonderful opportunity to significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

This site already has hundreds of trees but could easily accommodate thousands more. A mature tree on average absorbs 21 kilograms of carbon dioxide each year so on maturity this woodland could absorb many tons of carbon each year.

If this pattern is replicated across the United Kingdom it would be a wonderful legacy for future generations.

The council argues that we need the 2,000 dwellings that are planned on the golf course but this is not correct.

Already thousands of new dwellings are planned in other areas of Maidenhead and this includes the massive overdevelopment of the town centre.

The reason the council wants to build on the golf course is clearly financial as has been reported several times recently in the Adver tiser.

If the golf course site is developed not only would the opportunity to plant additional trees be lost but also many of the existing trees on the golf course would disappear.

Councillors should note that, at the recent Conservative Party Conference, Boris Johnson stated that houses should not be built on ‘green fields’ and that increasing construction on ‘brownfield’ sites, will be the new focus.