eAlert: 18 August 2022 - Advice On Hot And Dry Weather Conditions In England
Published 19 August 2022
Applies to England
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1. Hot and dry weather conditions in England
The prolonged hot and dry weather conditions in England have been causing difficulties for some landowners in meeting requirements of their rural grant and payment schemes. Guidance on how to deal with difficulties arising from the unusual weather relating to grant schemes administered by the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) has been published on GOV.UK.
We are aware that some newly planted trees on woodland creation restocking and non-woodland sites are dying due to recent hot and dry weather conditions. We are also aware that restrictions on water use may be affecting the ability to water standard trees that have been planted within the last three years. Whilst some losses are expected even in normal years (even with the best planting and management, a proportion of trees will not survive the first years of planting and should be replaced as routine), there may be some sites where exceptional losses are experienced because of the weather conditions. In many cases, for woodland creation and restocking sites it will not be possible to assess the extent of the effect of the unusual weather until beat up surveys take place in the autumn.
The Forestry Commission is exploring how best to support our grant agreement holders where their new woodlands and trees have been, or are at risk of being, significantly impacted. In the meantime, we want to remind you of your grant terms and conditions and to direct you to advice we have published today on responding to these conditions now and preparing for them in the future.
Q. Where can I get advice on dealing with the effects of prolonged hot and dry weather on my trees?
We have published a blog How to help young trees survive prolonged hot dry weather that describes the immediate responses you can take and how you can prepare for next year and onwards, to anticipate future prolonged spells of hot and dry weather.
Q. Who do I contact if I have a grant agreement and think I might not be able to meet my obligations as a result of these circumstances?
In the first instance, if you have concerns that you may not be able to meet the requirements of your grant agreement due to the prolonged hot and dry weather conditions and want advice about your options, please contact the relevant grant administrator as soon as possible (details below). They will be able to give you advice about what you need to do, depending on the extent of any damage. If calling, please have your grant type and your agreement number or reference to hand (and your SBI, where relevant) and if writing or emailing, please include these details in your message.
For CS schemes, the relevant grant administrator is the Rural Payments Agency (RPA). For legacy woodland schemes, the England Woodland Creation Offer, Tree Health Pilot, HS2 Woodland Fund, Urban Tree Challenge Fund, Local Authority Treescapes Fund and Woodland Carbon Fund, the relevant grant administrator is the Forestry Commission. Our national Compliance team will be a single point of contact for all FC grant schemes and triage communications to the relevant grant or hub team as appropriate. See contact details for the FC Compliance team and the RPA at the end of this eAlert.
Q. What if I think I need to claim ‘force majeure’?
With the exception of the Local Authority Treescapes Fund, grant agreements are underpinned by terms and conditions that include a provision for claiming force majeure. We will be contacting Local Authority Treescapes Fund agreement holders directly.
You should remind yourself of the specific force majeure clauses in the terms and conditions of your grant, and clauses related to your obligations to replace dead trees in ‘normal’ circumstances. If you believe that tree losses in your grant-funded scheme caused by the prolonged hot and dry weather are serious enough that it means you will not be able to meet the agreement’s requirements, this may be considered as a case of ‘force majeure’ and you must notify the relevant grant administrator in writing (by email or letter) within the timeframe described below:
- for CS agreements starting before 1 January 2021, you must email or write to the RPA within 15 working days of being in a position to do so
- For CS agreements starting from 1 January 2021, you must email or write to the RPA within 8 weeks of being in a position do so and use the subject title ‘Extreme heat 2022’
- for Forestry Commission administered grant schemes, you must email or write to our Compliance team within 15 working days, clearly stating the grant type you are contacting us about.
The point at which you are in a position to contact the RPA or FC to claim force majeure is not necessarily the time at which the force majeure event itself occurred – for example, it can take time to see and assess the full extent of damage caused by drought. To claim force majeure, you will need to prove that, despite taking every care that could have been expected of you (including, for example, any watering requirements in your grant agreement), the exceptional circumstances prevented you from meeting your obligations. Your evidence should include details of the actions taken with an explanation of the events and the dates they occurred and how this has prevented you from meeting your obligations.
We appreciate that it may not be possible to know the extent or significance of damage until later in the year. If you are unsure, please contact the relevant grant administrator or your FC Woodland Officer for advice as soon as possible.
Contact details for FC and RPA:
FC:
Email our Compliance team at fs.compliance@forestrycommission.gov.uk clearly stating the grant type you are contacting us about.
Write to Forest Services Compliance Team, 620 Bristol Business Park, Bristol, BS16 1EJ
You can invoke force Majeure for a legacy scheme by using the form on Gov.uk force majeure form.
RPA:
Email: ruralpayments@defra.gov.uk
Write to Rural Payments Agency, PO BOX 352, Worksop, S80 9FG
Call 03000 200 301