For owners or managers with a reasonable woodland holding there are several reasons to be optimistic about the EWGS.  For those with over 3ha of woodland a Woodland Planning Grant (WPG) for management planning is available.  This is an opportunity to properly assess a woodland holding and decide upon future aims and objectives.  Further to this one-off payment the EWGS also contains the provision for a Woodland Management Grant (WMG) which is paid out in return for satisfying certain environmental criteria and delivering a range of benefits, such as public access or wildlife habitat management.

Woodland grants will continue to offer the range of planting and woodland management opportunities as contained in previous schemes.  However in the Woodland Creation Grant (WCG), for new planting, and the Woodland Regeneration Grant (WRG), for restocking, there is a recognition that a proportion or all of these operations may be carried out through the natural regeneration of stock. Targets for the success of natural regeneration will be established over a five-year period, though these may be extended for ancient woodland. It should be noted that WCG is a competitive grant and that rounds to consider prospective bids are used by the Forestry Commission to best allocate the monies available.

For those with greater than 30ha of woodland it is important that the implications of the EWGS and certification are understood.  Certification is a global environmental standard, proving the sustainable management of woodland.  Being certified allows woodland owners to sell their timber and other woodland products with a certification mark, demonstrating to retailers and customers that they are buying produce from responsibly managed woodlands. However what may be of most immediate interest to landowners is that woodlands of greater than 30ha must be certified if they wish to claim the WMG.  Therefore certification is a prerequisite to claiming an annual income stream which could be useful in ensuring woodlands are productively managed.

Finally there are monies available under Woodland Improvement Grant (WIG). These grants are currently targeted at SSSI condition, biodiversity and public access and can provide capital to implement significant improvement works.

Should you wish to learn more about woodland management, certification or YORWOODS work in general please contact Ben or Will via e-mail or phone.

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