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Thousands submit forestry panel ideas

July 28th, 2011 by

Volunteers and Staff handing in your messages and ideas for the Forest Panel

Photograph by 38 Degrees

Earlier this year 38 Degrees members scored a huge win when we helped force the government to scrap plans to sell of British forests. Now the Independent Panel on Forestry is deciding how they should be managed in future.

Thousands of us have sent in messages and suggestions for the forestry panel, a whopping 33,845 in total! On Wednesday, a special delegation of 38 Degrees staff and volunteers converged on Westminster to hand over the data.

Here are some of the things members have said:

“The forests and woods are places where people, especially those who live in built up areas, can enjoy a sense of freedom and well being, whilst enjoying the diversity of nature.”

“A sustainable resource that should be held in public ownership. They should provide areas of woodland that contain fast growing commercial timber, areas of farmed traditional species and areas of unmanaged woodland. All areas should be accessible for a majority of the time.”

“My vision is to have forests and woods that are owned, protected and managed by the government – not the private sector. This will ensure their survival for future generations.”

The panel told us they are now going to log all the suggestions made by 38 Degrees members and other members of the public. Their initial findings will be published in a progress report due in November this year. The final panel report will be ready in April of next year.

This is what people power looks like. Let’s keep working to make sure our forests are managed responsibly for us all and for future generation.

Update 1: here’s a video of highlight of the campaign:

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  • Ted &Coral Raine

    I really don’t understand all this ‘meet with the panel’ thing: we made it abundantly clear – as I emphasised in a well received letter in the local Press – that the forests and woodlands belong to the people. I simply don’t trust Cameron and his minions to do anything that doesn’t suit his own policies. I have always felt the forest takeover attempt was particularly weird – and sinister.
    As far as I am concerned, nothing to discuss. Take your profit-making paws somewhere else.

  • LearOrangutan

    Keep up the good work.  

  • Elizabethconran

    There is great concern in Teesdale, Co. Durham, that Hamsterley Forest may be one of the few which the Government plans to sell.  It is an important nature reserve and has an excellent range of activities (walking, riding, orienteering, nature walks, bird watching, mushroom picking, woodcraft days) for locals, as well as drawing visitors from far away for its mountain cycle tracks.  It brings valuable tourist income to Teesdale. We should be grateful if you could press for an answer on these points.

  • Ian Bailey

    Elizabeth,

    I live in Darlington and would hate to see anything happen to Hamsterley Forest. Do you know if an event is being organized?

    Ian

  • Inge EVeleigh

    How dare Cameron or anyone else in the govt .decide they have the right  to sell off our  forest land. Surely that is not theirs to sell off like a discarded scarf belonging to anyone. It is the ‘ People’s’ possession & I am incensed by the sheer nerve of the man trying to fool us into thnking  it is in our interests. It is nothing of the sort. A forest is a ‘living thing’ & unless you are an arsonist, I would think there are few reasons to be even thinking about selling off our heritage, & as few people who would let him get away with it. Cutting out a bit of forestry here, & another bit there for the odd indeterminate buyer  is  nothing short of insane, & I would  like to think someone could prove, illegal. What a nerve!.The sheer wealth of beauty, the comfort forests generate, the education they provide to be chopped up for the use of some who’ve got money, & denied to those who haven’t. Please don’t cover up by saying an owner with money could be required by law to fulfil certain requirements, this is common theft from citizens.Tendril , of Lewes.

  • Ted Coral

    It was highly instructive at the time of the initial forest take-over bid that the locally-living chairman of the Country Landowners’ Association, with commercial interests in forestry, building and farming, stated that in his opinion they felt “instinctively” that they were the best people to run the publicly owned forests and woodlands.  Now I wonder why. Be warned – there’s only one forest path the so-called Independent Panel on Forestry will be instructed to tread ; and it will, after all the flanneling and obfuscation, lead straight to all those ‘Keep Out, Private Property’ signs.

  • Ted Coral

    The way that 38-degrees has grown and flourished and done so much to focus minds on highly important issues is a great credit to the right-thinking and motivated initiators and current organisers:  but sadly a considered and polite dialogue with the present Government is a little like trying to stroke a snake. I’m afraid Mr Cameron’s administration cares for nothing but the pursuit of its own ideology, and that means anything in the public domain is fair game to acquire for personal gain. Snakes certainly dwell in forests – and for that matter probably under hospital beds too!!!

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