eAlert: 29 September 2022
Published 29 September 2022
Applies to England
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1. Hot and dry weather: temporary support for trees and woodland in 2022
Find out about the support we are offering to replace trees lost due to this summer’s exceptionally hot and dry weather.
Since the hot and dry weather this summer the Forestry Commission (FC) Rural Payments Agency (RPA) and Defra have been working together to put in place a support package for agreement holders who have lost a high proportion of trees planted during the winter of 21/22.
The RPA published guidance for farmers and land managers who were facing difficulties in meeting requirements for rural grant and payment schemes. We also provided advice in our eAlert on 18 August 2022.
If you are an agreement holder for one of the following grants please read our GOV.UK guide: Hot and dry weather: temporary support for trees and woodland in 2022 to find out what happens next:
- England Woodland Creation Offer
- Urban Tree Challenge Fund
- Local Authority Treescapes Fund
- Tree Health Pilot
- HS2 Woodland Fund
- Woodland Carbon Fund
- Countryside Stewardship: Woodland Creation Grant and Tree Heath Restoration - Countryside Stewardship agreement holders will be contacted directly by RPA in due course
We will be contacting agreement holders in the next few days. You can find details on GOV.UK on who to contact if you have not heard from us but think that you are eligible to apply.
2. Biosecure Procurement for FC grants – what you need to do
Check what to do before applying.
All applicants to the England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) and the Tree Health Pilot since 22 June 2022 will need to be aware of the new biosecure procurement requirement, as announced in April.
Prior to submitting your application, we recommend that you:
- speak to nurseries to ensure they are aware of the requirement and will have sufficient supply to fulfil your order - check the business directory on the Plant Healthy website for certified and applicant nurseries (either will be accepted) - ask nurseries not on the Plant Healthy directory if they are willing to apply for a Ready to Plant assessment for the stock you require
- complete an exemption form if you will not be purchasing your trees from a commercial nursery
Fera Science Ltd will be running a webinar on 3 October 1:00-3:00pm providing an overview of the Plant Health Management Standard, Plant Healthy and Ready to Plant Assessment for any suppliers wishing to find out more. Sign up for free.
3. Minor update to the Forestry Commission’s woodland management plan template
Check the recent updates.
The Forestry Commission’s full and small woodland management plan (WMP) templates have been updated with some minor changes.
- the out of date links have been updated to link to the relevant Forestry Commission GOV.UK pages
- guidance has been added to confirm that the MyForest editable PDF WMP template is an accepted format
- guidance has been added to highlight that Google maps or images of maps will not be accepted due to copyright protections
The updated templates can be viewed and downloaded from the Forestry Commission’s Create a woodland management plan GOV.UK page.
4. Seed Sourcing Grant - sign up to the webinar
The Forestry Commission will host a webinar on Tuesday 11 October 2022 to help with the application process. More information about the grant is available on GOV.UK page Seed Sourcing Grant.
Seed Sourcing Grant webinar
Join Megan Shirley, Forestry Commission Incentives Manager, and Clare Trivedi, Defra Plant Health R&D Manager, to find out about the funding available and the application process.
Tuesday 11 October 2022
2-3pm
5. Seed Sourcing webinar recording
Watch the webinar recording.
On Tuesday 13 September, the Forestry Commission and DEFRA delivered a webinar, hosted by ICF, to provide technical information on how to effectively manage existing tree seed sources, identifying and registering new seed stands and the planting of seed orchards.
View a recording of the session.
6. Would you like to find out more about the Woodland Carbon Code and the Woodland Carbon Guarantee?
Join our webinar!
Join our webinar on Tuesday 4 October 2022, where you can find out more about the Woodland Carbon Code and Woodland Carbon Guarantee.
Introduction to the Woodland Carbon Code and Woodland Carbon Guarantee.
Sign up to our webinar to find out about the Woodland Carbon Code and Woodland Carbon Guarantee and how they can enable forestry projects to secure extra income from the carbon they sequester.
Tuesday 4 October 2022
10am - 12noon
Book via Eventbrite