Tree Frontiers News
A newsletter that helps keep you abreast of interesting facts and information from the world of arboriculture and related industries
This month sees us settling into our usual winter pattern – working around the shorter daylight hours, layering up more when out on surveys, making sure our equipment can deal with the colder temperatures… Now that the clocks have gone back, the afternoon very quickly becomes evening.
Alongside the new season we also see a new financial landscape ahead of us. At the end of last month Rachel Reeves unveiled her highly anticipated first budget,?aimed at providing vital support to our ailing public services. One of the biggest surprises was the change to inheritance tax, which we know will affect a number of our clients.?
Whether this budget will have a significant knock-on effect in the arboricultural industry will be something that we will be keeping a close eye on.
Not only did the budget create a significant media reaction, but Angela Rayner's?decision?to intervene before the Sittingbourne development proposals were due to be heard at Swale Borough Council's planning committee has made national press too. The scheme is for 8,400 homes and has received?widespread objection from the existing community. This decision reinforces previous statements from the Government to help ensure that 1.5 million homes are delivered over the next 5 years. It is anticipated that the inquiry will conclude in February next year.
Completely unrelated to politics, we’d like to thank everyone who sponsored us for our Half Marathon last month. We raised just under ￡1,200 for Tiny Forest which we were delighted with. We are now thinking ahead to next year and a new challenge, we’ll let you know once we have decided what it will be!
Oxfordshire's Phase 3 survey opens
Following Phase 1 and 2, a draft local nature reserve recovery strategy has?been drafted with a map that summarises the top biodiversity priorities to people and organisations in Oxfordshire. Oxfordshire County Council are asking for your thoughts on the priorities, actions and locations that have been drafted so far by completing a short survey.?
Government releases biodiversity net gain templates?
A biodiversity gain plan is a document that shows how biodiversity net gain (BNG) will be achieved, an evidence that must be provided for BNG decisions. The 'overall' biodiversity gain plan template will be used to create an overall plan for the whole development, whilst a second template, the 'Phase' biodiversity gain plan highlights the?different phases of the?development.? A video on recording individual trees has also been released (see below)
Wildlife trust receives ￡1.25m in public donations?
Great celebrations for Cumbria Wildlife Trust who say they're "overwhelmed" to have received ￡1.25m in public donations on top of ￡5m funding to buy more than 3,000 acres of Skiddaw Forest. This will be used to complete the purchase of what will be England's highest nature reserve, including the summit of Skiddaw.
Spruce tree planting restriction begins?
From October 29, a planting ban has been in place?"to limit the spread of the beetle and protect our nation's trees, forestry and timber industries" ( Forestry Commission ).?The new spruce tree planting restriction comes into force from 29 October and covers parts of Lincolnshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Hampshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, Surrey, Greater London, Sussex, Kent and Essex - this is otherwise known as the 'demarcated area'.
DEFRA has reported "The demarcated area does extend to a small part of Bedfordshire, but there have been no outbreaks in this region. All outbreaks to date have been detected on stressed, dying and dead spruce?trees, which are more vulnerable to the pest."
A simpler Woodland Creation Planning Grant (WCPG) process?
The Forestry Commission is changing the WCPG process from 11th December to make the whole woodland creation process more efficient. This will support landowners, land managers and public bodies to design woodland that meets the UK Forestry Standard (UKFS).
The change will see the Forestry Commission carrying out Environmental Impact Assessments and consultation at the earliest opportunity in the woodland creation process, removing duplication and speeding up any future grant giving.
Climate forecasts launched for over 60 common tree species
The Tree Office in Sweden has launched climate projections that show how different tree species will be affected by future climate changes across Europe. The forecasts are a valuable tool for urban planners, arborists, researchers and others in the green factor, and can be downloaded free of charge. Please note, you'll need to translate the page into a fitting language to view.
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First steps in Urban Tree Canopy?
There are continued calls for increases in urban tree cover across our cities driven by policies around climate adaptation, mitigation, levelling up and social justice. UTCC metrics can be useful for a number of reasons such as to provide a proxy for ecosystem benefits, to monitor change over time and space, to support tree population resilience planning or climate adaptation to prioritise areas for increasing canopy cover to deliver tree equity.
38% of the world's trees are threatened with extinction, more than wildlife
More than 1,000 scientists took part in the assessment of the conservation status of trees, compiled by the plant conservation charity, Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) and the International Union For Conservation Of Nature (IUCN).
38% of the world's trees are now threatened with extinction and at risk in?192 countries, with clearing land for farming and logging the biggest threat and, in temperate regions, pests and diseases. Well-known trees such as magnolias are among the most threatened, with oaks, maple and ebonies also at risk.
London Urban Forest Resilience Project
Trees are battling the climate crisis, pests and diseases throughout the UK. Richard Cobb, Local Partnership Advisor for the South East and London, shares what we can learn from recent research in London.
Trees and woodlands are one of our most effective tools for tackling the climate and nature crisis and deliver many other benefits, but they’re at huge risk from climate change and pests and diseases.
The London Urban Forest Resilience Project has been investigating the challenge. The new report?shows what policy makers, funders, local authorities and tree professionals can do – in London and beyond.
Tree Frontiers News
We did it!
Last month we ran the Oxford Half Marathon. Thank you to everyone that sponsored us. We exceeded our target, raising a total of?￡1,175 for Tiny Forests.?This small endeavour recreates natural forest environments in urban settings, providing all the environmental benefits that these ecosystems generate as well as an outdoor learning resource for everyone to enjoy.?
A couple of days after the race, Flis took the opportunity to assist in ongoing research at the scheme in Witney. This involved measuring trees (with the help of her son Alfie!) and was rewarding to see what the donations will go to in the future.
We're already planning our event for next year. However, we doubt Nick will be joining Flis and Steve though, as following the event he retorted?"Anyone who sees me go anywhere near running shoes again, ever, you've got my permission to shoot me."?
If any of our contacts are up for a joint effort, then please get in touch ([email protected]).
Case Study -?Avenue Management Plan
Tree Frontiers were appointed to?develop a management plan for an avenue of mature trees situated along a frequently used public footpath in Berkshire.
Read about how our input has allowed our client to begin work re-establishing this important visual feature and natural habitat.
Tree of the month
This month's tree is the 'King of the Forest', capable of surviving for centuries and acting as the cornerstone?of the ecosystems it inhabits. It has a defining stalkless feature from which it gets its name, can you guess what it is???