Lessons in North forest
Jun 6 2008 by Liz Hands, The Journal
CHINESE foresters have learned lessons from the way in which North woodlands are run.
A nine-strong delegation from the Chinese State Forestry Administration spent two days touring 155,000-acre Kielder Water and Forest Park as guests of the Forestry Commission, seeing how timber production is being squared with high environmental standards.
The visit was organised under an initiative to share good practice with rapidly developing countries such as China, India, Brazil, South Africa and Mexico.
Although on a far larger scale, China is undergoing a similar process to that which took place in Britain in the last century, with long-term deforestation being reversed with extensive new planting schemes.
China plans to explore having a significant part of its 430 million acre woodland estate audited against a tough green benchmark, which has already been achieved by the Forestry Commission.
Success could mean the seal of approval from the international Forest Stewardship Council, showing that conservation and sustainability is being balanced with timber operations.
Britain was the first nation in the world to gain this forest certification gold standard for its state-run woods.
Graham Gill, forest management director for Kielder Forest District, said: “It’s encouraging to see our Chinese counterparts going down the same road. They found Kielder a real eye-opener.
“We showed them harvesting sites, explained our planning systems, visited Egger in Hexham and took them to see the wood chip fuel heating plant in Kielder. Well managed woods are one of our greatest resources and that applies the world over.”
Kielder is England’s largest and most productive woodland, supplying 5% of all domestically grown timber in the UK – over 400,000 tonnes every year.
The forest is also a key area for red squirrels and internationally important habitats such as the Border Mires.
Kielder supplies 5% of all domestically grown timber in the UK, – 400,000 tones every year
