Barbreck

Our objective is to create a productive woodland, in keeping with much of the existing forested landscape in the area.

This productive area will be focussed to the Northeast of Kilchrenan village linking to the productive conifer forest behind Ballimore Farm. Around the village we will be planting native woodland, consisting mostly of Downy birch, Alder, Rowan, and Caledonian Scots Pine, with elements of Sessile oak, Goat willow, Hazel, Aspen and Cherry.

These are in keeping with existing native woodland in the area while also adding species diversity to the existing willow scrub that can be found in some parts of the site already.

In lieu of a secondary commercial conifer element, it is proposed to plant half of the native woodland at productive densities (2,500/ha minimum), with the bulk of this area planted with Downy birch and Scots pine.

This plan will leave a significant area of open ground (195 Ha, 67% of the total site area), for other open ground habitat types (heather/wetlands etc). This open ground will help retain important views, maintain biodiversity and habitat, and help to create a more varied feel to the woodland being created.

Tree species being used have also been matched for the native broadleaf planting based on an extensive vegetation survey.

The overall area within which the woodland creation will be carried out is 296 Hectares (Ha) in size, of which 33% will be planted with trees, resulting in a total of approximately 233,000 trees being planted.

Most of the woodland creation area will be Sitka spruce to create a sustainably managed forest supplying timber into the UK timber market; which currently relies on around 80% imported timber to meet our current timber demand. There is a growing need for domestically grown timber, which Barbreck will play a part in solving. Read more about the role of timber in climate change mitigation.  

The remaining 40 Ha will be native woodland consisting of Scots pine and native broadleaves, with the majority of these being focused around the village of Kilchrenan,  helping to provide local landscape benefits and amenity value. 

This mix of species meets UK Forestry Standards (UKFS) whilst the diversity is a good mix to deal with a changing climate. 

All broadleaved/native trees will be of local origin and provenance, as per UK Forestry best practice, coming from seed provenance regions 106 or nearest neighbour. The plan is to source the majority from Taynuilt Trees, a small independent nursery located only 15 minutes’ drive away. It is expected that Maelor Forest Nurseries in Darnaway will supply the home-grown conifer species.

The site is located next to the former Kilchrenan Primary School, which unfortunately is closed with the children now attending Taynuilt Primary School. There is potential for Taynuilt or other local schools to visit and have education visits along with the opportunity to plant trees as part of the project. Other potential educational or volunteering opportunities would also be welcomed.

Woodlands improve the quality of our environment: 

• Wooded catchments help protect the quality of our drinking water supplies and can reduce the impact of flood events. 
• Trees capture harmful pollutants in our atmosphere and improve our air quality, especially in towns and cities. 
• Tree canopies provide shade, shelter and absorb sound. Soils, animals and humans can be protected from the extremes our weather and climate throws at us. 
• Woodlands help to stabilise soils, reducing erosion and slips. They can protect against pollution by providing a buffer between source and receptor, or help the recovery of contaminated land. 
• Trees need pollination too and woodlands offer a rich habitat for our wild pollinators. 

Access to the site will be planned to not produce any additional timber haulage traffic through the community at Kilchrenan. 

The proposed planting will include ATV tracks that will be available for the local community and visitors alike through pedestrian gates. While advisory notifications may be implemented during certain forestry operations, these routes will be open to non-motorised access as per the Outdoor Access Code. 

Although the proposed site itself has no species or habitat environmental designations, the site does border on adjacent protected areas. A full bird and vegetation survey has been conducted with no protection issues raised. In accordance with the UK Forestry Standard, and Tilhill’s own professional design standards, bio-diversity will be promoted, areas of open ground maintained, and areas of existing deep peat and marsh preserved. These are essential habitats and carbon sinks and will add important structural variability to the overall forest design. Tilhill also manages much of the existing woodland in the area so the protection of species and habitats can be managed holistically at a landscape scale.