ALICE IN WONDERLAND: Is Scotland barking up the wrong tree?

The senseless and money-grabbing climate agenda strikes again

By Alice Jones

MY wonderland for almost 24 years has been the beautiful Scottish Borders. 

Recognised widely for its rolling hills, scenic glens, meandering rivers, vivid yellow gorse in spring time and purple heather in autumn, it’s a joy to live in such glorious surroundings. 

The ever encroaching ‘Sitka march’, as it’s aptly named, is rapidly changing this landscape to ugly scarred hillsides, vast areas of non-native mono-block conifers,
man-made gravel tracks, high fences and locked gates.  The seasonal call of resident birds is replaced by an eerie silence. Nothing thrives in these ‘woodland creations’ which the Scottish Government and Scottish Forestry are encouraging and enabling at such a pace that Scotland will soon be bonny no more.

Sitka Spruce is a large fast-growing evergreen conifer used mainly for timber production. It’s highly versatile and accounts for about 50 per cent of commercial planting in the UK, however Scotland’s climate seems particularly favourable to its growth. With the introduction of carbon credits easily utilised by large corporates, 100 per cent tax relief on income from timber plus grants and incentives which have been too good for those with their eyes on the prize to ignore, the acceleration of commercial planting schemes in Scotland is eye watering. The damage is irreversible.