🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <845202496snx@black.demon.co.uk>, Tim Channon
<tchannon@black.demon.co.uk> writes
>
(CUT)
>It occurs to me that the beeches are not specimen trees, but are a collective
>and it's the collective forming a landmark which is the item in trust.
>Such a landmark, where the trees were planted at the same time, is obviously
>a transient thing which cannot exist contiguously forever.


Trees have many other values than visual value.

The Earth Summit at Rio in 1992 discussed forests.

In the ("Non legally binding") statements that came out of the forest
confernces was this one, signed by the UK, and re-signed by the UK at
the Helsinki Confrence on the Sustainability of European Forests, June
93:

*...Forests should be sustained for their economic, ecoloical, social
cultural and spiritual values.*

That 3500 folk signed a petition to save the beeches and there is an
ongoing campaign to save them shows the beeches have cultural and social
values.

Although old trees come from seedlings, it is clear that many people
find spiritual qualities in existing old trees.

However, the most important value of these trees is their ecological
values.

Due to traditional management in the UK where woods were nearly all
managed for productive timber and fuelwood, few trees ever reached their
biological maturity, rotted, fell and decayed. Coniferisation of
broadleaf woods and land development of between 1918 and 1986 wiped out
about half our recent natural broadleaf forests compounding this.
(Estimated coversion is 53 percent plus, private communication, English
Nature).

Forest are _not_ just about trees. 

Old and rotting trees are essential habitat for many birds and small
mammals and bugs and beetles and fungi and algae and lichen. The UK has
a dearth of old, rotten, fallen and decaying trees.The Forest Authority
itself recognises this in their new forest guidelines, presently under
consultation, as do a large number of conservation and forestry bodies
in the new *Ancient Trees Inititive* which is headed up by English
Nature.

From the point of view of consevation, that these trees are old and
rotten is the very reason for preserving them, rather than destroying
them. The National Park have got it very, very wrong.

While anyone can plant new trees, and many good people do plant new
trees, no one can plant what is most needed now...200 year old trees.




Theo Hopkins

To a fungi, a forest is merely lunch.