Forestry & British Timber articles from August 2004

Forestry & British Timber archives from August 2004

SQUARING THE SAME OLD CIRCLE.
August 4, 2004... Somewhere in England there sits a bright young lady whose job it is to collate and co-ordinate the sources of grant money, of one kind or another, available to woodland owners and the forestry industry in this benighted country. Some of these,...

FORESTRY BENEFITS, #1BN - GRANTS, A WOEFUL #18.5M.
August 4, 2004... 'Targets for the creation and management of woodlands under the England Rural Development Programme are running ahead of schedule. The exceptional level of applications we have received, coupled with existing commitments, mean that we have...

Safe climbing.(Health and Safety Laboratory)(Karabiners)(Brief Article)
August 4, 2004... Three-way karabiners are still the best form of rope-to-harness connector for tree surgery and arboriculture but improvements are needed, say researchers at the Health and Safety Laboratory. Their findings, published in June*, if adopted by...

'Confederation' up and running.(Confederation of Forest Industries (UK) Ltd)
August 4, 2004... A 'significant milestone' has been reached in the effort to streamline and concentrate the industry voice as recommended in the Macdonald report published last year. A new company - the Confederation of Forest Industries (UK) Ltd - has been...

Timber growth fund.(FIM)(Brief Article)
August 4, 2004... There is a significant increase in interest from two types of forestry investor - those who believe that timber prices are likely to increase from the current all-time low, and those using the investment to mitigate a potential inheritance tax...

Helping the wood chain.(Tree Health Services)(Mersey Forest)(Brief Article)
August 4, 2004... The opportunity to add value to the otherwise redundant timber that is a daily by-product of its tree surgery has been afforded to Tree Health Services with the arrival of their new Wood-Mizer mobile band saw. The Woolton Village,...

High times for Scottish forestry at the Highland.(Allan Wilson)
August 4, 2004... A 'busy year, full of change', was how Scottish Forestry Minister Allan Wilson described the past year in Scottish forestry at this year's Royal Highland Show. He was there to announce the winners in the Scotland's Finest Woodlands Awards, an...

The heat is on!(Margaret Fay)
August 4, 2004... Kielder, the UK's most remote village and site of England's largest man- made forest, has switched on the country's first wood fuelled district heating scheme. This system, powered by wood chips produced from the surrounding trees, will heat...

Future shaped by past.(Jonathan Humphrey)
August 4, 2004... Exploring the factors which shaped Scotland's historic pinewoods will be crucial in the drive to revitalise their rich habitats. That was the conclusion when almost 100 specialists from across the UK and Europe gathered in the Highlands in June...

Learning on the job.
August 4, 2004... Prospective students wishing to gain knowledge and practical experience from both a college and work site environment, need look no further than Holme Lacy Campus, Herefordshire where an exciting new training programme will be available from...

Group CoC for PEFC.(Programme for Endorsement of Forest Certification)(Certificate Of Competency )
August 4, 2004... Specialist chain of custody management company Independent Forestry has set up a Programme for Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) group certification scheme for small companies, the first in the UK, which will be overseen by BM TRADA...

Useful start to restoration.(Jerry Langford)(Coed Cadw)
August 4, 2004... 'The Welsh Assembly has led the way in Europe on commitments on sustainable development, and the Assembly's own planning documents recognise that ancient woodlands are `irreplaceable habitats of high biodiversity value which should be protected...

Calling all foresters!
August 4, 2004... With the opportunity to win a three-day forestry trip to Finland, Tilhill is expecting plenty of interest from foresters wanting to enter its Forestry Skills Challenge at APF 2004 - the largest forestry event in the UK - running from September...

Easing timber transport problems.
August 4, 2004... Alistair Speedie, a chief official with Dumfries and Galloway Council in South West Scotland, has taken over as chairman of the Timber Transport Forum. Mr Speedie, who is the council's group manager of strategic planning and transportation,...

Key role in Tree Aid.(Brief Article)
August 4, 2004... Tony Hill has been appointed programme support director of Tree Aid, the UK's only development charity working on the ground and focusing on forestry as a means of long-term alleviation of poverty and environmental degradation in Africa. ...

'Licence to skill'.(Lantra)(Brief Article)
August 4, 2004... Sector Skills Council, Lantra, has received a five-year licence from the Secretary of State for Education, Rt Hon Charles Clarke MP enabling it to continue leading the drive to boost skills in the UK's trees and timber industries. ...

New home-grown market?(Brief Article)
August 4, 2004... A team from Napier University has been awarded a #200 000 Scottish Enterprise grant to develop a new timber product for the construction industry which utilises Sitka spruce in combination with other materials. Dr Abdy Kermani and...

Growing biomass for Wilton.(Renewable Energy from Agriculture)
August 4, 2004... The first steps towards creating a supply chain from short rotation coppice have been made on Teeside. Following months of recruitment and promotion by local supply company Renewable Energy from Agriculture (REFA) Coppice Resources have...

Changes at top for WT.(Brief Article)
August 4, 2004... Mike Townsend has relinquished his duties as chief executive of The Woodland Trust for health reasons. 'This is a matter of great sadness to everyone at the Woodland Trust', said Peter Oliver, WT chairman. 'Mike has made a substantial and...

MARKET REPORT: Steady as she goes.
August 4, 2004... The UK timber industry seems to be in pretty good shape at the moment and although there's an overall air of calm, there are also a number of developments coming together that have the potential to significantly change the way that it is...

Hot topic.(Seminars)(Brief Article)
August 4, 2004... The prospects of woodfuel making a significant impact toward renewable energy technology in the North East of England were boosted at 'Woodfuel - Getting it right', a two-day seminar looking at the opportunities offered by wood and forest...

WoodWISE: The view from the sharp end.(Nick Hilton)
August 4, 2004... In which our monthly contracting contributor Nick Hilton of Woodwise Forestry* feels rather downbeat and looks to his stars for guidance... Just for a change, whilst perusing the weekend magazine that came with our paper this morning, I...

Thinking SMALL in Sacramento.(Gareth Mayhead)
August 4, 2004... `It was great to discover that there are initiatives similar to ours in the USA and elsewhere'. That was how The Mersey Forest's Gareth Mayhead summed up the recent `Smallwood 2004' conference which he attended at Sacramento, California in May....

It's not (ALL) depressing!(David Ogg)
August 4, 2004... David Ogg (Independent Forestry)* is the only full-time group manager in the UK to specialise in Forest Management and Chain of Custody Group Certification Schemes and one of only a handful globally. He worked with Proforest, on a voluntary...

APF 2004 DIARY.
August 4, 2004... In his last diary entry before the Ragley Estate show opens, Exhibition Secretary Ian Millward* reports that interest in the event has been greater to date than ever he remembers. Amazingly, this is my last column before the big day. (Thank...

From BSW to Tilhill - `hardly missed a beat'.(BSW Harvesting)(Tilhill Forestry Ltd.)
August 4, 2004... Over two years ago, in `a move that has surprised the forestry world' (as we reported in FBT February 2002) BSW Harvesting was acquired by UPM-wholly-owned subsidiary Tilhill Forestry Ltd to enable the 156-year- old Scottish-based company to...

WGS closure in England.(Woodland Grant Scheme)
August 4, 2004... Following the announcement on 28 June to close the Woodland Grant Scheme to new business (see also p3), Paul Hill-Tout, Forestry Commission Director for England, looks at the background to this decision, what it means in practise and the future...

Our brolly culture!(6th Arborists Trade Fair)
August 4, 2004... No matter how much it persists down, rain will never dampen the spirits of the dedicated show-goer and the 6th Arborists Trade Fair, already comfortably ensconced from day one in its new Bathurst Estate, Cirencester venue was no exception. They...

APF Preview 2004: Ragley's riches.(Trade shows)
August 4, 2004... `There is nowhere else in the UK where you can see and compare every make of machine in one location'. This was the proud assertion of APF Exhibition Secretary Ian Millward, speaking in July when he announced that to date over 160 exhibitors...

The Tree Climbers Forum.
August 4, 2004... 'The Tree Climbers Forum want to give all climbers and arborists a voice and an opportunity to tell us what they would like to learn more about'. Four professional, experienced and well-qualified arborists, Chris Cooper-Abbs...

New lift for timber handling.(Loglift and Jonsered)
August 4, 2004... Following the announcement that Falkirk-based company Outreach has relinquished its role as UK distributor for Loglift and Jonsered timber- handling cranes (FBT July p26) comes news from the latter manufacturers of a new dealership network to...

Royal Blue.(Blue Machinery PLC)
August 4, 2004... Newly formed waste treatment, recycling and materials handling equipment specialists, Blue Machinery PLC*, exhibited at this year's Royal Show for the first time. The company offers a wide range of shredding, composting and screening equipment...