The National Assembly’s Climate Change, Environment and Rural Affairs Committee is launching an inquiry into forestry and woodland policy in Wales.
This will include looking at the Welsh Government’s delivery of its Woodlands for Wales strategy.
The Welsh Government recently gave the Committee an update on progress against its priorities in the strategy.
The Committee’s aim is to assess the delivery of the strategy in terms of its four strategic themes. It would like to know to what extent people feel the Welsh Government is delivering against these themes.
They are:
- Responding to climate change – coping with climate change and helping reduce our carbon footprint;
- Woodlands for people – serving local needs for health, education and jobs;
- A competitive and integrated forest sector – innovative, skilled industries supplying renewable products from Wales; and
- Environmental quality – making a positive contribution to biodiversity, landscapes and heritage, and reducing other environmental pressures.
The Committee also wants to find out:
- How the strategy is contributing to the delivery of duties under the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 and the Environment (Wales) Act 2016;
- How the strategy will be considered in the context of emerging policies, plans and statements (e.g. National Natural Resources Policy, Biodiversity Plans and Area Statements); and,
- What are the challenges and opportunities that arise from leaving the European Union?
“Forests and woodlands cover more than 300,000 hectares in Wales, and the industry is worth half a billion pounds to the Welsh economy,” said Mark Reckless AM, Chair of the Climate Change, Environment and Rural Affairs Committee.
“We will be taking a close look at this sector, examining how the Welsh Government is balancing the sustainable environmental and commercial priorities.
“We would be interested to hear what anyone with an interest in forestry and woodland in Wales has to say.”
The closing date for written submissions is 7 April 2017.
More information about the inquiry, including how to contribute evidence, can be found on the Committee’s web pages.