‘Forestry’ has been a fairly vague label slapped on an industry that came about in roughly the early 19th century. Unfortunately, in this vagueness a lot of the value that forestry holds has been lost, so here we’re going to begin to explore what it is and why we as a business care so much about it.
SO WHAT IS IT?
When we undertake forestry work, this is a mixture of science and craft to create, manage and conserve forests for our benefit and do so in a sustainable manner. We work with landowners, be they public organisations or private clients, to understand their desired objectives and work towards these ends.
Woodland management, timber cutting, logging, timber extraction, are just some examples of the what the umbrella term ‘forestry’ entails and we’ll explore in more depth over our next few articles. Importantly, forestry is an inherently sustainable industry - we have to make sure the yield we extract does not reduce the base of the forest itself - to ensure we can use and enjoy forests for years to come.
SUSTAINABLE FORESTRY
The forestry industry matters because much of our economy and social life draw from the management of forests: industries from construction, farming, and engineering through to energy, food, and transport, and beyond, require materials that are produced in forests. The basic materials are, in a word, essential to life as we know it, and beyond the pure economic value of forests, they are also places that we can simply enjoy. For many of us, forests form the settings to many a memory and are even a nostalgic (for those of you who’ve watched Mad Men) link to our childhoods. When we take this perspective, it’s easier to see how our lifestyles are intertwined with the physical world we live in, and in order to maintain this our land and forests have to be managed properly.
And for us, this is the crux as the forestry business; we see the value that forests hold, not simply in terms of the numbers but also as a vital parts of our ecosystem that we need to work with intelligently for decades to come. So our ultimate objective isn’t simply to make pretty woodlands and plant some trees - though that is definitely part of it - it is to ensure that the land is managed sustainably and to cultivate woodland that can be enjoyed and used across generations for both business and pleasure. When working with clients, we draw up strategies to meet their desired objectives so that as well as maximising the yield from the land in the the short-term, we maximise extraction over the long-term as well. Economically speaking, thinking ecologically makes the greatest sense. It is at the centre of this balance between exploitation and long-term maintenance, that we operate at our best.
This larger picture guides all we do.
WHY OUR FIREWOOD IS IMPORTANT
The fascinating thing about the big picture (our environment), is how it connects to the small, everyday ones that we all experience. Firewood is both a necessity and a luxury: there is nothing quite like a good fire to gather around with friends and family during a cold winter or at a summer party. Through our forestry services we provide quality firewood and kindling for use in your fireplace at home. This means that by buying such firewood you know that you are also supporting the big picture. Small acts like these may seem trivial but as communicated in one of our favourite adverts of recent times, the biggest battles can be won in the smallest of moments. The way we see it, through sustainable forestry we can contribute to the larger picture whilst helping with something as small but as vital as a warm home.
It’s a fascinating world.