The Scottish Government recently consulted on the future of forestry in Scotland, inviting responses to their plans for the devolution of forestry and their proposals for a dedicated Forestry Division within the Government and the creation of a new land management agency called “Forestry and Land Scotland‟. Last week the Galloway and Southern Ayrshire Biosphere submitted their response that appeals for a more balanced approach to land management which considers the wider impact of forestry on the environment, communities and other rural businesses. As expressed by Joan Mitchell, the chair of the Galloway and Southern Ayrshire Partnership Board, “an appropriate balance in land use is important at local as well as national level and we are anxious to preserve the local discretion which allows the Biosphere to work as an effective partnership of different interests”.
The Galloway and Southern Ayrshire Biosphere, while recognising the important economic contribution of forestry to this area, have concerns that creating a new Forestry Division within Government could lead to the centralization of decision making with the consequent loss of a more regional approach to management and regulation. The Biosphere feel that the Government must consider the wider impacts of forestry on local communities, biodiversity, water and carbon sequestration and storage and recognise the importance of the National Forest Estate for recreation and tourism. With the growing emphasis on planting targets and commercial forestry within the Scottish Government, the Biosphere fear that the wider implications of new commercial planting schemes and the management of the National Forest Estate will lead to inappropriate planting with limited wider benefits to visitors and those who live and work in the area.
The Galloway and Southern Ayrshire Biosphere’s full response can be found here:
https://www.gsabiosphere.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/my_response-1.pdf
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