Climate change target warning over forestry cuts

Scotland has ambitious tree planting targets but they have been missed in recent years

Scotland's forestry sectors have warned budget cuts could "torpedo" climate change targets for new woodland.

Woodland Trust Scotland and an industry body said a grant scheme to encourage tree planting was facing cuts of more than £32m or 41%.

Ministers have missed all but one of their last six annual targets for creating new woodland, which helps absorb greenhouse gases,

The Scottish government said the UK budget had forced it to make cuts.

Rural Affairs Secretary Mairi Gougeon admitted they would fail to meet next year's target but said that Scotland would still be creating more woodland than the rest of the UK combined.

Increasing the amount of woodland is an important part of Scotland's aim to become net zero by 2045.

Forestry and conservation group projects have been financially supported by the Forestry Grant Scheme.

Industry body Confor and Woodland Trust Scotland said 14,000 hectares of new woodland had been approved for creation this year, but that the budget allocation would only support the planting of 9,000 hectares.

Delivery gap

Stuart Goodall, chief executive of Confor, praised the government's ambition but said the actual amount of woodland being planted had fallen over each of the last five years.

"This proposed cut will only serve to make the gap between targets and delivery ever wider. A bad situation will become worse," he said.

Alastair Seaman, director of the conservation group Woodland Trust Scotland, said investment rather than "warm words" was urgently needed.

"Creating new woodland and protecting what we've already got is one of the simplest and most effective responses we have to the climate and nature crises.

"It makes no sense to pull the rug out from under the sector in this way," he said.

Mairi Gougeon, Scotland's rural affairs secretary, said she remained committed to maximising the contribution of forestry to tackling climate change, and that 9,000 new hectares of woodland was significant even if it fell short of the target.

"We all now need to focus on getting as much woodland created and trees planted within our means," she said.

"We currently have record approvals for new woodland schemes and we need to concentrate in turning as many of these schemes into trees in the ground."