- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 10 August 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by John Home Robertson on 7 September 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive whether its finalised Scottish Forestry Strategy will contain practical proposals for the protection and investigation of archaeological sites within existing forests and proposed new plantations and how it plans to ensure that forest owners and forest contractors notify the relevant authorities of archaeological discoveries.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-9098.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 10 August 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by John Home Robertson on 7 September 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the preferred areas identified by local authorities in their indicative forestry strategies are sufficient to enable new planting to be doubled over the next 20 years.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-9102.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 10 August 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by John Home Robertson on 7 September 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive how much current grant aid it intends to redirect towards Forest Habitat Networks and what the implications will be for those sectors which will lose grant aid.
Answer
One of the priorities for action identified in the draft Scottish Forestry Strategy was to extend and enhance native woodland by developing Forest Habitat Networks. Assuming that this is included in the final strategy, the Forestry Commission will use the Woodland Grant Scheme to encourage landowners to contribute to developing such networks. The value of the grants awarded would depend on the number, size and quality of the applications received. If the total of all the grants for approved applications under the Woodland Grant Scheme exceeds the budget in any one year, some applicants will be asked to accept payments in future years.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 10 August 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by John Home Robertson on 7 September 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the potential for (a) natural woodland regeneration and (b) all forms of timber planting to contribute to carbon sequestration as part of its programme for combating climate change.
Answer
We have estimated that, if planting continues at its current level, trees and forests in Scotland will absorb about 400,000 tonnes of carbon each year. Obviously the amount of carbon absorbed would increase if the area planted increased. We are continuing to investigate carbon sequestration by trees, and the Forestry Commission is studying how different forms of forest management affect the amount of carbon absorbed by a forest. Nevertheless, reducing carbon emissions in the first place remains our main priority.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 10 August 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by John Home Robertson on 7 September 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will identify any estimated costs of the Scottish Forestry Strategy which are built into the figures published in Investing in You, the Annual Expenditure Report of the Scottish Executive, and the budgets from which these costs will be met.
Answer
Our Annual Expenditure Report contains information about our current expenditure on forestry programmes. Any additional expenditure arising from the Scottish Forestry Strategy will be included in future reports.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 10 August 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by John Home Robertson on 7 September 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive whether its finalised Scottish Forestry Strategy will contain practical proposals to promote the increased use of wood and timber brash as fuels in order to reduce net carbon emissions.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-9098.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 10 August 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by John Home Robertson on 7 September 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to examine the implications which doubling forestry planting over the next 20 years will have for other forms of agricultural land use and whether it will make any such assessment public.
Answer
About 10,000 hectares of new woodland is created in Scotland each year. We have no plans to double this rate of new planting. Should we wish to consider such a change to our current programme we would, of course, examine the implications for other forms of agricultural land use and for the environment before making any changes.
The indicative forestry strategies published during the 1990s identified over 850,000 hectares of land as preferred for new planting; this is more than sufficient for the current rate of planting of about 10,000 hectares per year. The Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations have been fully implemented; under these regulations the need for an assessment is established on a case-by-case basis.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 10 August 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by Sarah Boyack on 7 September 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to review the current planning regime for forestry.
Answer
We have no plans to review the planning regime for forestry.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 10 August 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by John Home Robertson on 7 September 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive whether its finalised Scottish Forestry Strategy will set targets for (a) the planting and re-planting of timber, (b) the maintenance or expansion of wood processing capacity in Scotland and (c) the output and export of timber and timber products.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-9098.
- Asked by: Murray Tosh, MSP for South of Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 10 August 2000
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Current Status:
Answered by John Home Robertson on 7 September 2000
To ask the Scottish Executive whether its finalised Scottish Forestry Strategy will include detailed implementation plans for promoting the transformation of plantation forests and bringing deer densities down to optimum levels.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-9098.
