Independent Panel on Forestry misses 89 million trees

At a workshop on 13 January the AA requested the Independent Forestry Panel take full account of the 89 million non-woodland trees that, to quote the Panel's progress report, "contribute to the 'woodiness' of our urban and rural landscapes". Supporting the panel's remit (Footnote 1) and definition of forestry (Footnote 2) AA Director Nick Eden said, "The Panel should now turn its attention to the trees that most people see day to day in the urban environment - trees that grow where most people live".

The Independent Forestry Panel was set up in March 2011 by the Secretary of State, Caroline Spelman, following government's hasty withdrawal of its Forestry Commission (FC) land sell-off idea. The Panel's remit is to advise government on the future direction of forestry and woodland policy in England http://www.defra.gov.uk/forestrypanel/.

Eden says, "Whilst the Panel was born out of the FC land sell-off debacle it has been given a remit that is far more wide-reaching than just FC land. It has realised this to a degree – the Panel's progress report (Footnote 3) shows that it has considered privately owned woodland. It does not, however, address urban trees adequately."

The report contains the word "forest" 380 times, "urban forest" three times and "arboriculture" once.

At the meeting Eden said that there needed to be a shift in mindset. "The UK is a forest. In some parts of the UK the density of trees exceeds the density of people and in other parts, the density of people exceeds the density of trees. The Panel seems to have restricted its interpretation of forestry to rural woodlands. Arguably the most accessible forest is on our doorsteps: urban trees – many of which are maintained by local authorities".

Referring to the work and organisation of the FC the report states that the net public expenditure on the Public Forest Estate this year will be some £20m. Comparing this to the £100m+ that local authorities spend on urban trees each year, further justifies the case for fully integrating urban trees into the Panel's advice on forestry and woodland policy.

One of the suggestions made by the AA was that Forest Research set up a research fund to which local authorities contribute 1% of their annual urban tree budget. This would generate £1m+ for urban tree research annually. The benefits of urban trees are better understood now than at any previous time. What happens to them directly affects the majority of the population. Divided ownership across 400+ cash-strapped local authorities and limited scientific research significantly limits the care we can give to the urban forest in which most of us live and work, 24/7, 365 days a year.

Some 80 people and organisations took part in the workshop. The Panel is due to make its full report to government in the spring of this year. Concluding the day the Panel's chair, the Rt Reverend James Jones, Bishop of Liverpool said that the Panel's recommendations would make a high and positive impact on government.

Footnotes

¹ The Panel's Terms of Reference include "To advise the Secretary of State [...] on the future direction of forestry and woodland policy in England"

² The Panel defines Forestry as "the practice of all aspects of tree and woodland management, including forest and woodland management, arboriculture, urban forestry, environmental forestry and research..."

³ The Panel's progress report is downloadable from the Panel's website http://www.defra.gov.uk/forestrypanel/ see Latest News: Panel launch progress report (8 December 2011)