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Richard Pow from the Forestry Commission speaks to Bdaily

I’m sure many of us have had a wander through the forests of Northumberland at some point – and probably without a second thought over who is in charge of looking after them.

Bdaily has been speaking to the Forestry Commissions’ North East grants, regulation and development manager Richard Pow, who explained that their work is far more than just growing trees.

“The purpose of the forestry commission is to protect and expand UK woodlands, and increase their value to society,” he explains. “However, as well as protecting the environment, we also focus on creating jobs and protecting livelihoods, and growing trees for domestic timber and fuel.”

Although the Forestry Commission looks after an area of 63,000 hectares in the North East, this only covers about half of all forests in the region. One of their biggest priorities therefore is helping individual land-owners manage their woodland areas.

“We provide advice and expertise where people are lacking,” he continues. “ It’s a big job, but an incredibly positive one if they can make good use out of it.”

The Forestry Commission has an annual budget of £20 million, of which £3 million comes to the North East. This money is then handed out in grant form to individuals and businesses looking for help to create and sustain woodland, create public access routes and protect wildlife habitats.

“By offering grant aid, this is one of the main ways we can encourage the public to work in partnership with us.”

The Forestry Commission is also set to benefit from the Rural Development Programme for England, and will receive a proportion of £100 million in European funding. This is positive news as the Commission faces budget cuts, as it will enable them to continue their positive work.

“The RDPE funding has been ring fenced, which will provide us with some certainty over the next few years,”

As well as aesthetically improving the North East landscape, the Forestry Commission is also engaged in helping people to grow wood for fuel. In areas where oil in commonly used, wood burning stoves are becoming increasingly popular and the government is keen to encourage this trend.

“Wood burning stoves are very efficient, and as well as the cost benefits which this brings, the government is also providing incentives to householders who choose to install them,”

“By offering funding to those who use this method of heat production, it can help cap costs, and householders should be able to pay back installation costs within 3 years.

“Alongside our efforts to bring disused areas back under management, this will be an incredibly positive thing for the industries related to forestry.”

There have also been recent suggestions that the government is panning to invest in power stations, which would use wood, an exciting prospect for Richard and his team.

“Plans are progressing for a biomass plant in Blyth which could process 1 million tons of wood annually,” he continues. “As well as creating jobs, it will also strengthen the value of wood as demand continues to grow.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .