Clearfelling & Replanting Case Study

CLEARFELLING & R E PL A N TI N G Highlighting, in practice, the considerations and operations required.

Rocksheild Forest is a privately

Planted in approximately 1980, on an upland loamy

owned 347 hectare block of

parcel consists of two key species. The main block is of

commercial timber located in North Eastern Cumbria, to the North West of Kielder Reservoir.

clay with a peaty surface and slowly permeable soil, the Sitka Spruce, with some smaller parcels of Lodgepole Pine.

The

soil

type,

together

with

an

elevation

of

approximately 212 meters above sea level, a gently

A 22.82 hectare parcel within

south facing slope and an average annual rainfall of

this larger woodland complex

timber reaching a maturity suitable for felling after 40

has been identified for clearfell and timber extraction.

approximately 1250 millimetres, has resulted in the years.

Most softwood conifer species would expect to reach commercial maturity between 40 to 50 years, depending upon the topography of the site and general management operations that were undertaken during the life cycle of the block.

GSC GRAYS

CLEARFELLING & REPLANTING CASE STUDY

1

ACC ESS

public right of way, warning signs were displayed. Prior to work commencing, Cumbria County Council highways

The parcel was well positioned, with access to the A7 and

department were informed.

A69, eight and seventeen miles away respectively. These routes offered good links to key sawmills such as AW Jenkinson’s in Penrith, Ward Timber Ltd in Frosterley and EGGER in Hexham.

TEN DER IN G Tendering commenced in March 2020. A total of eight prospective companies were offered to tender to purchase

The parcel benefits from good access. Three of the

the standing timber. Three of these declined to tender,

boundaries are soft tracks and rides, with the final

with those that did tender offering prices between £47.60

boundary to the South East bordering other further

and £55.12 per tonne. The highest price was selected to

planting. To enable efficient extraction of the timber, a

proceed.

new access track was required. The original route to the highway was made up partly by hard tracks however, a

F EL L IN G

1.52 kilometer section lacked sufficient access provisions.

It was originally anticipated during the tendering process

As such, a new track extending to 1.52 kilometers was

that approximately 6,547 tonnes would be extracted, as

constructed to be of sufficient structure to bear the

estimated in Table 1 below.

weight of both machinery and timber. This offered easy extraction of the highlighted parcel, but also improved access for future operations to both this parcel and other surrounding woodland blocks.

AREA (HA)

MAXIMUM POTENTIAL TONNES/HA

TOTAL ESTIMATED TONNAGE OF SITE

Sitka Spruce

18.4

444

5555

Lodgepole Pine

0.88

200

150

Sitka Spruce (windblown)

3.54

300

842

SPECIES

TOTAL

6547

Table 1 The felling operation commenced in June 2020. The whole extraction process took approximately three months, with final completion of the works in September 2020.

During the felling operation, it was identified that approximately 6.3 hectares of adjacent planting was Japanese Larch. Larch is prone to Phytophthora Ramorum, a fungal infestation. The weaker the trees, the more susceptible they are to falling victim to an infestation; as such it was agreed to clear this area while machinery was on site. This was sold for £7.80 per tonne; a significantly reduced-price accounting for both the windblown nature The track was constructed using a Forestry Commission

and low quality of the timber.

Woodland Improvement Grant to cover 40% of the costs of construction, which totalled approximately £54 per

This resulted in an additional 486 tonnes of timber being

linear metre. Construction began on the 15 foot-wide

extracted, therefore totalling approximately 7,033 tonnes

track in late 2019 with work complete in May 2020.

for the whole operation.

To ensure full compliance with health and safety legislation, where the chosen access track crossed a

GSC GRAYS

The brash left from the felling operations was sold following the extraction of the timber. Brash, which

CLEARFELLING & REPLANTING CASE STUDY

2

includes the branches and stumps removed from the

R EP L AN TIN G

merchandisable timber during harvesting, has a strong market as mulch for woodchip boilers, anaerobic digestors and compost. This was purchased at £4 per tonne. A total of approximately 3250 tonnes were sold.

Replanting commenced in the spring of 2021. The site is to be mainly populated with Sitka Spruce and Norway Spruce; these species are both fast growing with a strong market for extraction in approximately

The full extraction and sale figures are shown below in

another 40 years.

Table 2.

In order for compliance with the UK Forestry Standards, TONNAGE/ HA

£ PER TONNE

£

Sitka Spruce and Lodgepole Pine Timber

6547

55.12

360,870

Japanese Larch Timber

486

7.6

3,693

3250

4

13,000

MATERIAL

Brash

which requires no single species to occupy more than 75% of the woodland and no two species must occupy more than 95%, the riparian areas of the site in the north are to be planted with mixed native broadleaf

TOTAL

species. This therefore results in the planting levels as displayed in Table 3 below.

377,563

Table 2 The felled timber was stacked along the track connecting the clearfell area to the road. This offered

SPECIES

HECTARES

PLANTING DENSITY

TOTAL TREES PLANTED

Conifer

21.62

1 per 1.6m2

84,448

1.2

1 per 3m2

1,333

Broadleaf

an easy access route for timber wagons, with sufficient turning space without unnecessary distance travelled

TOTAL

22.82

85,781

by fully laden loaders. This site was sufficient distance from the public right of way to avoid trespass and injury through climbing on the timber.

Table 3 Based on current market evidence, the cost of replanting woodland is approximately £1.10 per tree. This includes

GSC GRAYS

CLEARFELLING & REPLANTING CASE STUDY

3

the purchase and delivery of the trees, stakes, and tree tubes together with the cost of planters to plant trees and install the stakes and tubes.

OPERATION Track construction

As the full woodland ownership is included in a vermin

Timber sales

management plan with perimeter fencing and deer

Replanting

EXPENDITURE (£)

INCOME (£)

49,248 377,563 94,359

stalkers, no fencing was required around this smaller parcel, significantly reducing the overall replanting

SUB-TOTAL

233,956

costs.

TOTAL C OS TS

Professional Fees @ 2%

7,551

The final figures for the full operation are displayed in Table 4. This does not include additional costs for the

BALANCE

226,405

management and establishment of the young trees over the few years following planting.

Table 4

COMME RCIAL TIMBER If you would like more information on clearfell and thinning operations that could be considered on your woodland assets, to help generate new revenue streams, get in touch with:

GSC GRAYS

PETER KNOX MRICS SURVEYOR

0191 303 9546 pck@gscgrays.co.uk

CLEARFELLING & REPLANTING CASE STUDY

4