Erratum

Towards the end of reference 1, I had a go of sorts at South West Water for chopping down all the trees around Venford Reservoir. I have now got around to checking with the website advertised on the notice above.

And there is indeed a fairly respectable reason. The people at reference 2, based in Exeter, supply forestry services to South West Water, and are working at a number of locations in Dartmoor and other parts of Devon. Regarding Venford they say that: 'We will be undertaking a clear-felling operation of the Norway Spruce and a thinning of the Scots Pine and some broadleaves during September. This operation is happening because these species are coming to their rotation and will be replaced with native broadleaf species which will improve the biodiversity levels around Venford Reservoir...'.

I presume 'coming to their rotation' is forestry speak for these trees now being ready for harvest and sale. While replanting with broadleaf is the alibi, an alibi which means that there might be some decent trees there again in twenty five years or so. I suppose the tree loving public is paying the price for arboreal fashion shifting from needle leaves to broad leaves, a shift which takes quite a long time.

Further down, there is talk of pests in Sitka Spruce, which I believe some people object to, and which I have now looked up. According to reference 4, a fast growing tree suited to wet conditions which can grow to a considerable size. A tree which originates from Alaska and which accounts for a quarter of the forest in the UK and half in Ireland. Looks like quite a good choice if you are in a hurry to build forests, to lock up as much carbon in trees as possible. Wind throw and wild fires may be down sides.

Reservoir closed, we took to the lanes, from where this snap was taken. It had rained a lot the week previous.

Bio-diversity on a fallen branch. I believe that if you get enough of this sort of thing you call it a rain forest, something we first saw on the road to Mallaig from Fort William in the far north.

References

Reference 1: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2023/10/chippenham-and-beyond.html.

Reference 2: https://forestandland.co.uk/. See current operations.

Reference 3: https://www.southwestwater.co.uk/.

Reference 4: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Picea_sitchensis.