PROPOSAL 12

The improvement of subsidy support for woodland wildlife corridor creation  

There is a clear benefit to woodland creation in certain circumstances and although this would need to be tightly regulated so as to not endanger food security we support this form of stewardship. The benefits to wildlife and prevention of soil erosion on land adjacent to waterways is undeniable as is the enhancement to the aesthetic appeal of the countryside and there are instances where the creation of small ‘connective or protective’ areas of woodland are justified on a cost benefit analysis favouring long term food system sustainability. However, there are matters which do need to be addressed with regard to the financial impacts on farm profitability caused by woodland creation. Capital funding should cover all costs of planting, fencing and early years management of new woodland and subsidy schemes should compensate for the loss of forward income and devaluation of land. We call for a review of the subsidy and grant schemes relating to woodland planting so that all these matters can be considered and that all parties gain from this beneficial form of environmental development. We propose that full forward loss of income from such schemes be factored into annually recurring subsidy payments and that full agricultural land sale value be retained on any new parcels converted to woodland in order to preserve the full real estate and loan to asset calculation values for farmers seeking finance agreements.