Latest news with #ScottishForestry
The Courier
18-05-2025
- The Courier
Stirling landowner evaded legal order to replant 864 trees by selling site
Land in Stirling where more than 800 trees were unlawfully cut down has been sold without replanting taking place, prompting a scramble to contact the new owner. In March, The Courier reported that a legal restocking order issued by Scottish Forestry was ignored for more than three years, after hundreds of trees were either removed without approval or damaged at a former caravan park on Cornton Road. At the time, Scottish Forestry said it was 'considering next steps'. It has since come to light that the former landowner, Beechtree Wright Ltd, sold the site to another party in February 2024 without replanting the 864 trees. The land was sold for £80,000, and is now owned by James Stewart from Carlisle. Scottish Forestry says it has been unable to contact the new owner in order to discuss the restocking order. A Scottish Forestry spokesperson told The Courier: 'This restocking case is very much still active and we are continuing to pursue it as quickly as we can. 'The problem that we are facing at the moment is that, without our knowledge, the previous owner who was served the Restocking Direction, sold on the land. 'We are currently trying to make contact with a new owner to ensure they are aware of the Direction issued to the previous owner and understand their intentions. 'It is very much our aim that the restocking of the woodland is carried out.' The law states that it is an offence to ignore an official tree restocking order without reasonable reason. Anyone found to be committing such an offence could receive a fine of between £5,000 and £10,000. The Courier attempted to contact Mr Stewart for comment but received no response.
Daily Record
09-05-2025
- General
- Daily Record
Grants scheme supports more than 70 Dumfries and Galloway tree planting projects
Farmers, landowners, schools and community groups benefitted from the Dumfries and Galloway Tree Planting Scheme, with hazel, oak and birch amongst the most popular species planted. A grants scheme has helped support more than 70 native tree planting projects across Dumfries and Galloway. Farmers, landowners, schools and community groups benefitted from the Dumfries and Galloway Tree Planting Scheme, with hazel, oak and birch amongst the most popular species planted. The programme offers grants of up to £1,000 towards native trees and protection and in 2024/25, 73 awards were made – allowing around 9,000 trees to be planted. In 2024/25, 73 awards helped around 9,000 trees be planted. The scheme is overseen by Dumfries and Galloway Woodlands, with funding coming from Woodland Trust Scotland, Scottish Forestry and the council's nature restoration fund. Dumfries and Galloway Woodlands' Phil Dowling, who leads on scheme delivery, said: 'This season we saw some truly innovative and inspiring projects across Dumfries and Galloway, it's amazing what you can do with £1,000. 'We had schools transforming playing field margins, farmers planting parkland trees and communities creating orchards. 'I really enjoy seeing how so many unassuming sites can be changed for the better, for the long-term, by just adding some trees. 'Activity this year was only possible thanks to scheme funders, particularly Woodland Trust Scotland, Scottish Forestry and funding from previous rounds of the Nature Restoration Fund. We are working with potential partners now in the hope of re-launching the scheme shortly for the next planting season.' Scottish Forestry's conservator for south Scotland, Neil Murray, added: 'This is great news and so rewarding to see the Dumfries and Galloway Tree Planting Grant Scheme supporting a great variety of projects in so many different locations. 'All these projects make a contribution towards tackling climate change, restoring nature, and simply improving the places that we live and work in. 'Scottish Forestry supports a vast range of woodland projects, both big and small. We are very supportive of this work and I'm particularly pleased to see so many volunteers, both young and old, get involved and planting trees – it is such a positive thing to do. Well done everyone involved.' It's hoped the scheme will open in the summer for fresh applications.
The Herald Scotland
28-04-2025
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Scottish Forestry under court threat for third time in a year
They believe the decision made by Scottish Forestry that an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) was not necessary was wrong. David Lintott, CEO of Restore Nature Ltd said: 'The scale of the work that is being carried out without any proper environmental assessment of the impact it's going to have is shocking really.' In a Crowdfunder, 'Save Todrig from Sitka spruce plantation' launched to fund the legal process, Restore Nature Ltd declared: 'We believe the decision by Scottish Forestry to 'screen out' an EIA on 23 December 2024 was unlawful.' It follows a similar Crowdfunder carried out by the 'Save Stobo Hope' campaign. Over the past year Scottish Forestry has been the focus of a series of court threats relating to large scale conifer plantations. In 2024 the regulator was taken to judicial review by campaigners over its decision not to require an EIA at the almost 2000 acre site, which hit the news when heather was sprayed with herbicide. Heat at Todrig (Image: Member of public) Scottish Forestry ultimately overturned that decision, issued an enforcement order halting the planting, cancelled a £2 million grant issued to the developers, and, in February of this year, ordered an EIA. Following this, True North Real Asset Partners, owner of the Stobo Hope plantation, then responded to the halting of the works with its own petition for judicial review. Todrig is a similar story, yet different in some key elements. The 1,000 acre estate is a large area of heathland, wetlands and grasslands in the Scottish Borders near Melrose. The Crowdfunder describes it as 'steeped in history and part of the Ettrick Forest' and also 'once a royal hunting ground with oak and hazel woods'. Close to 85% of the planted area, though not the whole land holding, is set to be planted with the commercial conifer, chiefly the controversial fast-growing non-native conifer, Sitka spruce, valued for its timber. The application for the planting at Todrig was made by Euroforest Silviculture (previously named Pryor and Rickett Silviculture) on behalf of Gresham House Forest Growth & Sustainability LP, which bought Todrig Farm for £12.3m. Restore Nature also notes that: 'Adjacent to Todrig is Whitslaid, the site of another proposed plantation for 1,700 acres of mostly Sitka spruce. If both schemes are approved, this would result in a contiguous, predominantly Sitka spruce monoculture plantation of 2,700 acres or 11 square kilometres. 'This will lead to a permanent loss of heather moorland, wetlands and grasslands, further devastating the flora and fauna of the Southern Uplands.' READ MORE: The crowdfunding page also claims Scottish Forestry is 'favouring investors over rural communities'. 'Scottish Forestry," it says, "informed stakeholders for Todrig on 4 March 2025 that the 28-day public consultation would run until 1 April 2025, but failed to mention the EIA had already been 'screened out' (not required) on 23 December 2024, a month before the woodland creation application was registered and accepted by Scottish Forestry in January 2025. 'It appears Scottish Forestry failed to give due consideration to stakeholders and in particular the local community, including those represented by Lilliesleaf, Ashkirk and Midlem Community Council, in determining that an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) was not required. It also seems to us that Scottish Forestry has since 1 April 2019, failed to comply with the Forestry (EIA) (Scotland) Regulations 2017, by not publishing its EIA 'screening opinion' documents online." Area sprayed with herbicide at Stobo Hope (Image: NQ) David Lintott, barrister and founder of Restore Nature, said: 'The most significant thing about this is that whereas at Stobo they screened an EIA after they had got the consultations in, this time they screened it out three months before the consultation. That gives an insight into the lack of care that they're taking in terms of making sure that they're having effective consultation.' This, he said, is particularly concerning given that 'through the Scottish National Investment Bank the Scottish Government has given Gresham House the money to buy the land in the first place'. In 2021 SNIB provided £50m of taxpayer's money into Gresham House Forest Growth and Sustainability LP. The National Trust (England and Wales) is also a partner in the fund. 'It's most unfortunate," said Lintott, "that they [the Scottish Government] screened it out in this way when they have an actual interest in the land.' The campaign is initially aiming to raise 'a minimum of £10,000 to pay for the legal costs of this Judicial Review with the Court of Session, Edinburgh'. 'If we are granted permission for a substantive hearing,' it said, 'we hope to raise an additional amount to challenge the decision by Scottish Forestry to determine no EIA was required. We hope that if an EIA is required, Scottish Forestry will refuse consent for the proposed woodland creation scheme." A spokesperson for Gresham House said: 'We are aware that Restore Nature Ltd has petitioned for a judicial review of the screening opinion issued by Scottish Forestry, which determined that an environmental impact assessment was not required for our proposed woodland creation scheme at Todrig in the Scottish Borders. As this is a matter for the relevant authorities, we await the outcome of the petition and will continue to comply fully with all required processes." Scottish Forestry declined to comment.
