2020 BUDGET
UK tree planting prospects ‘brightest for a generation’
T
he outlook for significant new tree planting in all parts of the UK is the brightest it has been for a generation, according to Confor Chief Executive Stuart Goodall. Mr Goodall highlighted a range of positive announcements – at UK level and in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland – designed to drive up planting substantially. This included the confirmation by Defra that the UK Government target is to increase annual planting to 30,000ha a year (of new woodland creation) across the UK by 2025 - exactly in line with Confor’s “ambitious but achievable” targets set in April 2019. The scale of ambition at Westminster was underlined by the confirmation of a £640 million fund for tree planting and peatland restoration in England in the March Budget by new Chancellor Rishi Sunak. Stuart Goodall, Confor CEO, said: “We have seen significant announcements across the UK which, if delivered on the ground, will mean we are making real progress towards the UK target of 30,000 hectares of new planting annually by 2025. “As we said last year, it’s an ambitious target, but an achievable >>
ENGLAND
WALES
The Government announced it will invest £640 million in new tree planting and peatland restoration in England through the Nature for Climate Fund. This is expected to drive up annual planting in England to contribute to the 30,000ha a year target for the whole (total annual) UK (planting) by 2025. Slightly confusingly, the (new) total (planting) target for planting in England in the period 2020-25 is also 30,000ha – this is intended to increase annual planting (rising) from less than 1500ha now to around 9000ha in 2024/25 (an average) of 6000ha/year over the next five years).. Targets for new planting (ha) by 2025 by country Scotland
15,000
England
9000-10,000
Wales Northern Ireland
In Wales, a major announcement in March for a national forest the length and breadth of Wales included £10 million of new funding for planting and woodland restoration. This was welcomed by Confor’s National Manager for Wales, Anthony Geddes, who said: “This is a game-changer for forestry in Wales - and for the wider environment. Planting millions more trees marks a significant commitment to tackling the Climate Emergency, declared by the Welsh Government in March 2019. This new funding can unblock the demand that we know is there and I look forward to seeing attractive, high-quality planting schemes brought forward in 2020.” The annual planting target in Wales is 2000 ha/ year, rising to 4000ha/year “as soon as possible”.
SCOTLAND In Scotland, which planted 84% of all new trees in the UK in 2018/19 – 11,200ha out of 13,400ha in total - an extra £6 million was allocated to tree planting in the recent Scottish Budget. The pipeline of new planting applications in Scotland appears to be strong. In addition, the ruling SNP party has signed up to a joint commitment with Confor to deliver 18,000ha a year in Scotland by 2030.
N. IRELAND In March in Northern Ireland, the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs pledged to target 900ha of new woodland creation annually - a significant increase on the 200ha being planted at the moment.
4000 900*
*By 2030
8 FORESTRY & TIMBER NEWS • April 2020
CONFOR.ORG.UK
