Kilchrenan awaits Tilhill’s response to forest concerns
Kilchrenan residents are waiting to see how forest and woodland management company Tilhill plans to mitigate any community concerns over plans to plant 460,000 trees as part of a new commercial forest near their village.
A consultation into the creation of a new woodland by Tilhill at Barbreck on behalf of its landowner was on the April agenda of Kilchrenan and Avich Community Council.
The community council has already sent in its response as part of the consultation, with mixed views.
Tilhill said it would publish a full list of concerns raised, along with how it plans to mitigate them as appropriate, community councillor Finlay McFee told The Oban Times.
“We are still waiting to see that,” he added.
Tilhill plans include planting 140 hectares of non-native sitka spruce and building a road through the middle of it.
There will also be some broad leaved tree planting but the amount currently proposed is at the bare minimum for a scheme that size. A feeling was expressed in the community council’s response was that it should be doubled from 40 hectares to 80 hectares. This question was put to Tilhill, with the response that the company does not get a grant for it, recorded the community council’s minutes from the meeting. There were also some concerns raised that the new woodland could destroy habitat for highly endangered black grouse, as well as loss of grazing land.
“Nobody wants to see black grouse squeezed out, they are rare enough as it is,” said community councillor McFee.
The April meeting heard that although the RSPB is “very concerned” it has no power over whether the project gets the go ahead or not - although it can advise.
The community gave its support for a RSPB survey to monitor the area’s black grouse population.
There are a numbers of leks in the area that Tilhill wants to plant up – leks are communal display areas used by black grouse to attract a mate. Eagles and ospreys are also frequent visitors on the site, and there is peat land and scattered Pict sites of historic interest.
Part of the project is to plant some native woodland close to the village and give public access to it, which got a positive response.
Mixed planting instead of block planting tree species would look better but the meeting heard the only way of managing commercial planting for timber extraction is in blocks because it makes felling easier. The community council also raised the issue of how close the proposed tree planting would be to the village hall and the Kilchrenan Inn, and that shading could cause problems with any potential green energy developments.
A suggestion was made that some of the planting close to the village could include a community orchard or species that benefit wildlife, such as hazelnut, cherries, pear and apples.
The Oban Times contacted Tilhill for a comment but they did not respond before we went to print. There is still time to take part in the consultation. To find out more, visit tilhill. com/barbreck.