§ Mrs. Margaret EwingTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if the Forestry Commission consults the Nature Conservancy Council about all new woodland grant schemes outwith sites of special scientific interest with the exception of those in Caithness and Sutherland.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonThe Forestry Commission consults the Nature Conservancy Council on planting and felling proposals falling wholly or partly within national nature reserves or sites of special scientific interest and on planting schemes which require to be assessed under the terms of the Environmental Assessment (Afforestation) Regulations 1988. The NCC is also notified by the Forestry Commission of all planting and felling proposals in environmentally sensitive areas and given the opportunity to comment.
§ Mrs. Margaret EwingTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland to what extent the Forestry Commission takes account of comments from local authorities on nature conservation aspects of forestry proposals; and if he will list the organisations the commission consults about the nature conservation aspects of forestry proposals.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonThe Forestry Commission consults local authorities over grant and felling applications in accordance with mutually agreed arrangements with individual authorities. If a local authority consulted by the commission objects to an application on nature conservation or other grounds the commission will always seek a solution through discussions with the local authority and the applicant. If the matter cannot be resolved, the commission is required to consult Ministers before any decision is taken to allow the application.
The commission does not seek comments from voluntary conservation bodies, but it does encourage statutory authorities, including the Nature Conservancy Council, to consider the views of such bodies in formulating their expert advice on forestry proposals.