Source: BBC Radio 4: Today Programme
URL: N/A
Date: 20/05/2011
Event: Woodland Trust CEO Sue Holden on why she thinks we need more trees
People:
Justin Webb: In danger, why?
Sue Holden: In danger - we want the public to, um, to show the passion that they showed at the beginning of this year, when the government proposed changes to the public forest estate. And there was a huge outcry, because people really care about trees, and they now need to respond to the panel's call for views, by explaining why they value trees, why they care so much, because there are huge issues still at stake.
Justin Webb: Is anyone going to take any notice though, sort of ten thousand letters from people saying "I like trees", I mean it sounds, in a sense, slightly cynical actually, that - do you have a sense that people are actually going to be able to make any difference by writing in?
Sue Holden: People did make a difference earlier this year, um, seven, eight hundred thousand people signed petitions which persuaded the government to rethink their proposals. So we need those people to now speak up, because there are huge issues that the government need to consider, and the panel need to make recommendations on.
Justin Webb: Like what?
Sue Holden: So we need to protect all our ancient woodland, so that's our equivalent of the rain forest, our richest habitat. And it needs protection - 85% of ancient woodland hasn't got it now, and we're still losing ancient woodland -
Justin Webb: So this is formal, legal protection you're talking about, that doesn't happen now -
Sue Holden: Yes, so designations that you give to habitats that are valuable, and we're still losing ancient woods through development. So the Woodland Trust has fought around 900 woods which have been under threat from development in the last ten years. And secondly, we need to double woodland cover in the UK. That's an ambitious target, but we need more trees, because society and the environment will benefit from a lot more woods, a lot more forests, and a lot more public access -
Justin Webb: You say society would benefit? We don't necessarily benefit - we've got some forests, which we can go to. Um, Evan was making the point earlier that there are too many trees, controversialist that he is -
Evan Davis (laughing): You're taking my words out of context -
Justin Webb: - I've slightly taken his words out of - but there we are, we can do that to each other, without fear of recourse.
Sue Holden: No, there aren't enough trees, so the benefits that we get from trees are the environmental benefits, so they store carbon, they create a great wildlife habitat, they help reduce flooding, they help with air quality and soil qualit- and soil stability. So we need trees for - to help the environment, and secondly society benefits, in terms of living in healthy green plac- green spaces with places for recreation, children benefit massively from playing in woodland, from learning about woodland. And then of course there's the economic return that you can have from woodland, the production of timber and the production of a carbon-neutral fuel, which is a huge part of reducing climate change.
Justin Webb: In a word, you're optimistic, aren't you. Because the wind is behind you on this, you're got the public behind you, and you really think you can make a difference now. We can change the way we regard our woodland.
Sue Holden: We've - absolutely - we've shown that the public care massively about trees and woods, but we now need them to respond to the consultation, they need to write to the panel about the issues that they care about. We need them to fight for the protection we need and the expansion of woodland that we need. And we need to make sure that access is improved to woodland.