Forestry Meeting Notes October 2021

Notes: Meeting with James Britton meeting onsite at Sallowvallets Friday 1.10.21 11am. 

Present: James Britton (Forestry England, FE), James Sanders, Scott Baine, Emma Gleave (The Rewild Project TRP)

Discussions

JB is happy with coppicing practices from TRP.  Has discussed in the past:

-       Stumps – keeping as low to the ground as possible for h&s

-       Presentation of produce.

-       Product lengths being kept even.

-       Tidying up hinges & felling cuts – this will also come with experience.

Happy that feedback taken onboard. 

Discussion today:

-       Site organisation:  Planning extraction routes, where to stack, lengths.  

-       Brash to be kept on the floor, rather than creating habitat piles as this is an operational site rather than an ecological site.  Brash on the floor is useful for the machinery.

-       Team organisation:  TRP engage with disadvantaged groups to offer voluntary therapeutic days in the woodland.  These groups are not very productive, however from the start of this cutting season TRP will look at having another team of trained and more effective chainsaw / forestry workers, with possibility of 2 weeks intensive cutting as this would be especially useful for newly trained chansaw users.

-       Timescales – JB is not worried about timescales personally, but check with DS.  If this site was managed by contractors / machinery it would be done in 2 weeks. TRP feel a middle ground can be reached by engaging services with Pat Delaney to assist with extraction of wood.

Notes: Meeting with Dave Sykes, onsite at Sallowvallets Friday 8 October 11.30am

Present: Dave Sykes (FE) James Saunders, Scott Baine, Emma Gleave

Discussions: 

-       DS is happy with TRP and would like to continue to work together following Foresters Forest completion.  Contracts / licences for Kensley Sheds and Forestry should be separated with a 5 year ‘Beat Contract’ with FE on DS ‘patch’ for coppicing with annual licening on a patch by patch rolling agreement.  To check Kevin Stannard is happy that TRP as a Social Project would not need to go through a tender process.

-       Sallow Vallets to be completed by Easter 2022.  TRP agree this is a very do-able timescale however will need a further licence as current licence ends December 31 2021.  DS to send by email, EG to request.

-       Buy back of wood products for fencing.  Volunteers can be trained in clefting, peeling, pointing etc to creating usable fencing posts.  DS would be interested in any number 6ft pointed 3-5inch, 8ft square 5-8inch tops.  JS & DS to look into prices and feedback to come to agreement.

-       Hazel Coppice would be more of an ecological site, discussion regarding suitability and linking with Kate Woollen to agree onsite practices.

-       Community growing projects, integrating agro-forestry approaches.  DS suggested land in Bream that is suitable to develop for this purpose.  TRP to contact Tamzin, the community ranger.

-       Licence / Lease for Kensley Sheds – this is James Williams patch, suggest conversation with him and also with Lewis James, the land agent in Estates department.