People living near Chepstow Park and Wentwood forest are being invited to tell Forestry Commission Wales what they feel about plans for the future of their local woodlands.
FC Wales has arranged a consultation event this month where staff based at its district office in Llandovery will share the proposals for Chepstow Park, Wentwood and St Pierre woodlands plus many of its smaller woodlands located in and around the town of Chepstow and the villages of Itton and Shirenewton, Monmouthshire.
These woods provide many opportunities for public enjoyment as well as producing high quality timber and protecting important ancient woodlands, so FC Wales is keen to hear what residents and stakeholders have to say about the plans.
FC Wales manages the Assembly Government owned woodlands to bring a variety of benefits to society, including improving environmental benefits in such a way that helps to fight the effects of climate change.
In doing so, FC Wales values the feedback from community consultation, which is an important requirement of maintaining accreditation for the UK Woodland Assurance Standard (UKWAS) and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) schemes, which independently assesses forest management systems.
The accreditation also allows FC Wales to sell timber with Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) accreditation, which denotes our woodlands are managed sustainably.
The consultation event will be held at the FC Wales Itton Office, near Chepstow, between 3pm and 7pm on Tuesday, 13 July.
Mansel Jones, FCW design planning forester, said, “This consultation offers residents the chance to meet local Forestry Commission Wales staff as well as providing an opportunity for them to influence the future management of their woodlands.”
