NEW FOREST TODAY MAGAZINE

Team effort

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Managing the forest is a team effort

Have you ever wondered why some trees – perhaps those close to your favourite woodland walk - are selected for felling? To the uninitiated it may appear a random and somewhat unplanned process, but the reality is quite different.

The New Forest is a working landscape with a significant amount of timber produced sustainably each year. The whole of the Public Forest Estate carries Forestry Stewardship Council certification for its sustainably managed woodlands. This woodland management shapes the woodlands and in part, adds to the biodiversity and secures recreational opportunities that we all enjoy. Prior to carrying out operations, a huge amount of planning and consultation goes into operations from teams with skills and expertise in all aspects of the work.

Richard Burke, the Forestry Commission’s South Walk Manager in the New Forest said: “People often don’t realise there is a huge amount of planning and a great deal of team effort that takes place before tree felling in any area occurs.”

Richard and the South Walk team are currently preparing for felling work in the Waterside area of their beat, to commence next spring.