Day 058 - 30 Nov 94 - Page 27


     
     1        matter are now very closely controlled and, in the case of
     2        forestry, very much held under the forestry -- Forest and
     3        Water Guidelines to which I have referred.
     4
     5   Q.   Is the modern restrictions on the use of fertilizers
     6        greater than it used to be in forestry?
     7        A.  Yes, I think that applies to all use of chemicals and
     8        agriculture and forestry, yes.
     9
    10   Q.   Before we move on to biodiversity, a general question just
    11        struck me:  Was there some kind of sea change in the 80s in
    12        terms of environmental concern with forestry management?
    13        Is this something that has happened in most countries?
    14        There has been a tightening up of laws, concern expressed,
    15        different practices introduced?  Would that be fair comment
    16        to say that the 80s was some kind of significant -----
    17        A.  Oh, yes.  I do not think there is any question that in
    18        the area of forestry attitudes changed and practices
    19        changed.  I think we have identified one of the reasons why
    20        it became a forestry programme, and that is because trees
    21        have matured that have been planted in the postwar periods,
    22        and consideration of what should be replanted became one in
    23        which decisions could be made for entirely different
    24        reasons from those that were made in the immediate postwar
    25        times.
    26
    27   Q.   So would it be fair to say that pressure from
    28        environmentalists coincided with the economic
    29        practicability  ---
    30        A.  Yes.
    31
    32   Q.   -- of introducing new changes?
    33        A.  Yes, there is no question whatever that organisations
    34        that drew attention to potential problems as well as actual
    35        problems were influencing throughout the whole of that
    36        period the attitudes of both the people who involve
    37        directly in forestry and the government that, of course,
    38        identifies the policy for any given country.
    39
    40   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Is it possible for you to place
    41        chronologically a watershed where commercial aims which
    42        have clearly been prevalent for some considerable period of
    43        time came to be balanced by environmental concerns?
    44        A.  Yes.  As far as the United Kingdom is concerned in
    45        forestry, in 1985 the government published its guidelines
    46        for the forestry management in both the private sector and
    47        in state ownership of forestry, and they included all the
    48        environmental issues of multi-purpose forestry in that
    49        programme.  So, since 1985 the Forestry Commission has been
    50        interpreting these rules and has, obviously, developed them 
    51        as they have progressed. 
    52 
    53   MR. MORRIS:  So the recognition of environmental concerns on
    54        that scale in this country was 1985, then the practices
    55        were then, presumably, examined and they there were audits
    56        or whatever in the late 80s which led ---
    57        A.  Yes.
    58
    59   Q.  -- to actual changes?
    60        A.  Yes.  I think it would be fair to say that from 1985

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