Mark B Page Chartered Forester

Mixed woodland, Yorkshire.

In more than 30 years in forest management I have learned that forests and trees are actually far more dynamic than is popularly understood.

The value of trees both individually and en masse as forests, woodlands and plantations is incalculable.

Oak & ash woodland, Yorkshire.

I reproduce this poem from ‘The Forest’ by Walter Kümmerly.

Man -

I keep you warm on freezing winter nights
I am your shade from scorching summer sun
The roof joists of your house, your table’s board
I am the bed in which you sleep at night
The wood of which your mighty ships are built
I am your pickaxe shaft, your cabins door
The wood of both your cradle and your coffin
I am the bread of goodness, flower of beauty
Answer my prayer: Do not destroy me…

The book was published in 1973^*, and since then the words have become more urgent, as new issues have developed.

The modern world of plastic, steel and concrete in which we find ourselves was built on wood, from the hand tools that our ancestors once used to the fuel of the early industrial revolution. This world needs to consider more closely the use of timber and other forest products. Trees fix carbon more efficiently and permanently than any other organism, and in well managed woodlands the efficiency is increased.

Second growth forest, Cascadian Mountains, BC, Canada.

Forest products should not come from the remnants of the world’s decimated natural forests, but from well managed woodland, forests and plantations.

I am a tiny cog in a massive world wide industry, working on a little island in the North Atlantic, and overseas, and I offer my services to those who care about trees, woodlands, the money in their pockets and the bigger picture.

Please call for a discussion, or use the contact page to email me.

^* -  ISBN 0-88331-059-7

A very large hat & larger teak leaf.