Woodlands must be more diverse if Scotland is to hit net zero target
THEY blanket vast swathes of the country and are hugely popular recreational areas as well as being good for the environment.
But woodlands in Scotland must be adapted to minimise the risks of climate change, a new report has claimed.
Foresters are being urged to make woodlands more resilient to potential threats in the future while making sure they continue to provide environmental, social and economic benefits and also playing a key role in achieving net zero by 2045.
The advice, published during National Plant Health Week which ends tomorrow, is contained in a new UK Forestry Standard Practice Guide produced by the Forest Research agency.
It advises increasing tree species and diversity, creating mixed woodlands, using natural regeneration and the careful selection of tree provenance.
Environment Minister Mairi Mcallan said: “Our forests and woodlands have such a substantial role in helping to reduce climate change and nature loss, but we need to protect them and ensure they are up to the job well into the future.”
At the 2022 Institute of Chartered Foresters conference on Climate Smart Forestry, Ms Mcallan highlighted the serious challenges with rapidly changing climate change, including milder, wetter winters and warmer drier summers mixed with more frequent extreme weather events.
She said: “With this change in climate we also need to ensure Scotland’s forests and woodlands are more resilient to the growing number of pests and diseases that we are now facing.
“There is a climate emergency upon us right now and keeping the status quo is simply not an option.
It is essential that we make sure our forests are fit for the future.”
Trees play a crucial role in climate mitigation – with around 6.2 million tonnes of harmful carbon dioxide removed from Scotland’s atmosphere each year. This is around 10 per cent of the country’s gross greenhouse gas emissions.
The report stresses the importance of mitigation and adaptation measures to be considered together to ensure any action does not solve one problem while creating another.
In October last year, Forest Research was hailed after identifying a toxic tree disease in woodland in Cornwall and Devon.
Woodland managers, landowners, the forest industry and tree nurseries were urged to remain vigilant after the Forestry Commission and Forest Research Phytophthora Pluvialis in the woodland. Phytophthora Pluvialis is a fungus-like pathogen known to affect a variety of tree species, including western hemlock, Douglas fir, tanoak and several pine species.
It is reported to cause needle cast (where needles turn brown and fall off), shoot dieback, and lesions on the stem, branches, and roots. They were the first reports of this pathogen in Europe.
The preservation of forests in Scotland could also be the key to cracking the mental health crisis as research that came out late last year proves the immense benefits of trees and woodlands for people’s wellbeing.
The report claimed it is estimated that woodlands can save £185 million in treatment costs annually.
The report, published during National Tree Week and funded by the Forestry Commission, Scottish Forestry and the Welsh Government, is the first time the health and wellbeing benefits of the UK’S woodlands have been quantified.
Ms Mcallan added: “Scotland’s forests and woodlands offer so many environmental, social and economic benefits to society.
“During the Covid-19 pandemic, access to woodlands has become even more important to individuals in supporting and maintaining their wellbeing. It is widely recognised that spending time in woodlands can have a positive effect on alleviating conditions such as depression and anxiety.
“This study is important because we now have a clear monetary value on how much our woodland resource could be worth in tackling poor mental health.”
There is a climate emergency upon us right now and keeping the status quo is simply not an option