HUME - SNP FAILING TO MANAGE SCOTLAND'S FORESTRY
Jim Hume, Liberal Democrat MSP for the South of Scotland and Deputy Environment Spokesperson, has launched a stinging attack on the SNP for failing to manage Scotland's forests properly.
The MSP has obtained figures which reveal that the SNP are favouring international developers over local communities when it comes to joint ventures on the forestry estate.
Commenting Mr Hume said:
"The SNP's record of utter failure on Scotland's forests continues because now they're encouraging international developers to profit from our national forestry estate rather than allowing our own rural communities to enter into sustainably managed local projects.
"Large energy companies stand to make huge profits from renewable energy ventures whilst at the same time potentially wiping out large swathes of forest cover to accommodate hundreds of wind turbines. None of this money will be invested back into Scottish communities. This is wrong and is fundamentally at odds with a publicly owned asset.
"The national forestry estate is a massive resource, and careful and urgent consideration needs to be given to its long term management.
"Ministers need to start working with communities in Scotland to achieve a balanced mix of sustainable and appropriate renewable projects rather than chasing a quick buck from developers who have little or no regard for our forests.
"So far the SNP have handled the forestry estate with appalling incompetence. This latest money chasing exercise is a worrying development, and the Environment Minister needs to explain why once again her Government is jeopardising the economic and environmental value of our forestry estate in Scotland in favour of developers."
Ends
Notes to editors
Please find letter from Maitland Mackie on the matter
Dear Sirs,
It is an enormous tragedy in the making, the Forestry Commission selling the pass, by giving away the huge revenues available, from the wind power potential of their 660,000 ha, to foreign international developers. It is not necessary. It should not happen, and ministers have to take steps to prevent it, not applaud it!
Here are the financial fundamentals – taking as example a 10, 2.5MW Turbine installation.
Capital cost - 2.5 x 10 x £1.2 M = £30 million gross returns - 25000/3 x 24 x 365 KWs @ 11p = £8.03M
Site rents – approx £40k/turbine - £400K (FC income?)
Maintenance - say £40k/turbine - £400K
Insurance - say £10k/turbine - £100k
Interest on £30 M @6% - say £1.800k
Depreciation (15 yrs) says £2.000k
£4.700k
Annual return
£3.330 Million (11% after 6% interest on all K)
That is the sort of income stream available to wind turbine developers. Thus for 1000 such turbines, 100 times the above example, our Forestry Commission is allowing these major foreign investors to reap off our land and vistas, a £330 million per annum income stream, and that net of their 6% interest charges. We have not the full information on total numbers and size of turbines, but just know that these figures stand up pro rata with the megawatts capacity installed. I do know about it having seen the success of my family’s investment in 3.4 MW installation that drive our business. And I have spent the last two years enthusing the rural sector to retain ownership of the renewable energy potential of its land and vistas.
Hence my shock to find our own Forestry Commission selling the pass. They are of course offering the usual peanuts to locals, (circa £3.6M, 1% of the net revenues) as per the norm of the National and international wind power developers. And of course the Forestry Commission collects the rental monies, in the example above equating to some £40,000,000. Again the small end of the total potential.
It is crazy and does not need to happen. The Forestry Commission are big boys, with a £1 billion asset base, and with a built in business arm, Forest enterprise Scotland. There is absolutely no reason whatsoever for not creating a wind power sector within it, to develop their own wind power potential, and doing so with full involvement of the community’s local to potential sites. Indeed I met with their Michael Ansell, then I believe the new Chief Executive of Forest enterprise Scotland to discuss and agree with him this potential. Why they have now chickened out beggars belief. They will say that they are not allowed to borrow. If true, then for goodness sake lobby to have the rules changed so that public bodies can borrow. And Ministers, get stuck in and make it so.
I notice from a quick look at Forest enterprise Scotland's annual report, that they have a commitment, within their list of key performance indicators, “to manage public Forest estates to deliver public benefits”, and to play “a major part in delivering rural development” and “to make best use of their assets for the public good.”
Giving away a potential annual income of over £300 million of our national heritage, cannot be the way to do that! I note that Forestry Commission Scotland comes under the jurisdiction of the rural and environment directorate, looked after by Richard Lochhead and Roseanna Cunningham. Please please ministers, do not let this happen. If it is just simply that Forest Enterprise Scotland have lost their bottle, and don't have the guts to keep ownership, I am happy to come and organise it for them for nothing!
From the personal experience of my family’s investments in 3.4 MW of turbine capacity, I do know the basic economics, and I have spent much of the last two years encouraging local rural communities to take ownership of the wind power potential of their land and vistas, to ensure that the substantial revenues stay with the locals.
Please find PQs tabled by Jim Hume
S3W-39956 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects
Forestry Commission Scotland to complete (a) an environmental and (b)
a habitats regulations assessment of plans to develop renewable energy
projects on its estate.
Due for answer Friday, March 11, 2011
S3W-39955 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects
Scottish Water to complete (a) an environmental and (b) a habitats
regulations assessment of plans to develop renewable energy projects
on its estate.
Due for answer Friday, March 11, 2011
S3W-39952 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is
on the reported view of the timber industry that the national forest
estate provides significant economic wealth for communities in terms
of direct employment and support to timber processing companies, and
what measures it is taking to ensure that competing land uses are
balanced in the long term.
Due for answer Friday, March 11, 2011
SNP £300m annual giveaway
S3W-39951 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there is
legislation or guidance on (a) it and (b) its agencies maintaining a
commercially viable national forest estate that sustains direct
employment and timber processing companies.
Due for answer Friday, March 11, 2011
S3W-39950 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it
takes to assess the (a) economic and (b) environmental impact of
replacing commercial woodland in the national forestry estate with
wind energy projects and what mechanisms there are to ensure the
long-term sustainable management of the estate.
S3W-39949 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of
the funds raised through renewable projects in the national forest
estate has been reinvested in purchasing commercially viable land.
Due for answer Friday, March 11, 2011
S3W-39948 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of
the funds raised through sales of woodland by Forestry Commission
Scotland’s reprovisioning exercise has been reinvested in purchasing
commercially viable land since 2009.
Due for answer Friday, March 11, 2011
S3W-39947 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive where woodland sold
through Forestry Commission Scotland’s reprovisioning exercise has
been located since 2009 and what the date was of completion of each
sale.
Due for answer Friday, March 11, 2011
S3W-39946 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive how (a) many
hectares have been sold and (b) much money has been raised through
Forestry Commission Scotland’s reprovisioning exercise since 2009.
Due for answer Friday, March 11, 2011
S3W-39945 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of
the funds raised through Forestry Commission Scotland’s reprovisioning
exercise has been reinvested in (a) tree planting and (b) purchasing
land for the national forest estate since 2009.
Due for answer Friday, March 11, 2011
S3W-39944 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there is
legislation or guidance on reinvesting funds in replanting
like-for-like woodland from wind energy technology projects that are
sited on commercial woodland in the national forestry estate.
Due for answer Friday, March 11, 2011
S3W-39943 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there is
legislation or guidance on the replanting of like-for-like commercial
woodland for parts of the national forestry estate that are allocated
for wind energy technology projects.
Due for answer Friday, March 11, 2011
S3W-39942 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive how many hectares of
commercial woodland have been planted in the national forestry estate
in each year since 1999, also broken down by local authority area.
Due for answer Friday, March 11, 2011
S3W-39941 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive how many hectares of
commercial woodland have been replanted in order to offset wind energy
technology projects in the national forestry estate in each year since
1999, also broken down by local authority area.
Due for answer Friday, March 11, 2011
S3W-39940 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive how many hectares of
commercial woodland from the national forestry estate will be required
to be allocated to fulfil the wind energy proposal announced by the
Minister for Environment on 20 February 2011, broken down by local
authority area.
Due for answer Friday, March 11, 2011
S3W-39939 - Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD) (Date Lodged Friday,
February 25, 2011): To ask the Scottish Executive how many hectares of
commercial woodland from the national forestry estate have been
allocated to wind energy technology projects in each year since 1999,
also broken down by local authority area.