Yesterday morning I read about the Government proposal to

1.  

   For Sale - Crowthorne Wood

2.  

   Save Our Forests

3.  

   Help Save Crowthorne Wood

sell off state owned Forestry Commission land and later found myself walking the

dog in Crowthorne Wood and realised that it was one of the woods affected by

the proposed sale.  After some research

on the internet, I discovered a map on the 38 degrees website showing all the

woods affected.  The two forests nearest

to Camberley affected by the proposals are Crowthorne and Bramshill Forests.

My personal feelings are that we should not sell off the forests;

once they are gone they will be lost to future generations.  What do you think?  There are at least two petitions collecting

signatures – The Woodland Trust and 38 Degrees “Save Our Forests” Campaign –

and there may well be more.

Crowthorne Wood (along with Bramshill) has been restored by

the Forestry Commission over the last decade into a wildlife haven – exemplary

Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). 

The Forestry Commission site describes the area as one that “combines

forest, water areas and heath” and is “rich in dragonflies, butterflies and

rare birds and plants, all amidst breathtaking scenery.”  According to the British Dragonfly Society it

is one of the best sites in England,

with at least 24 species of dragonfly and damselfly breeding there, out of 38

listed in the entire country.  It is also

an important Special Protection Area because three rare European birds breed

there – the Dartford Warbler, woodlark and nightjar.  The area is also home to a community of rare

insects that love bare earth such as burrowing bees and wasps.  There are also a variety of amphibians and

reptiles, including grass snakes and adders, and a number of threatened plant

species, such as pillwort, a rare aquatic fern.

The woods, reputed to have once been part of King Henry

VIII’s hunting forests, were farm and parkland until conifers were planted

there in the 1920’s to provide timber. 

By the last 1960’s the need for building materials meant that many

fields were dug for gravel and sand. 

Restoration was needed after sand and gravel quarries were exhausted and

then land filled or left to fill with water. 

There was stagnant water and the heath had been neglected.  Nick Hazlitt, a forester from the Forestry

Commission, said that “without this project the site would have ended up with

uncontrolled scrub, trees and vegetation with shaded and stagnant water, an

environment which would not have attracted the current quality of wildlife.”  Last

January it was announced that thousands of trees were to be planted as part of

a nature conservation project in Crowthorne Wood by the Forestry Commission.

The Forestry Commission manages nearly 1,300 hectares of

land in the Thames

Basin, including

Bramshill and Crowthorne Wood.  The wood

that is harvested sustainably from the forests provides income to support

conservation and recreation.  In total

the Forestry Commission looks after over 250,000 hectares (600, 000 acres) or

woodlands in England

and most of this land is open for public access.  The Forestry Commission is the government

department responsible “for protecting, expanding and promoting the sustainable

management of woods and forests and increasing their value to society and the

environment” – that is until the government of the day decides to sell it off

to the highest bidder and then the words sound cynically hollow!! 

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