Written evidence submitted by Dr Andrew D Cameron, University of Aberdeen (Forest 03)
Effect of Spending Review on Forest Research
1. The forestry industry is almost unique in that it operates on very long timescales. A single cycle of a forest stand can take half a century or even longer to complete. Research on forests is similarly long term and experiments can run for decades. Funding cuts over a short period will have serious long-term consequences since experiments will almost certainly have to close to save money.
2. There is a long history of forestry experiments being closed to address short-term financial restrictions. When unpredicted events occur, such as the impacts of climate change or outbreak of new diseases, the long-term experiments that would have help scientists address these issues are no longer available.
Setting Priorities in Forest Research and Resources Allocated
3. Forest research in Britain is dominated by the Forestry Commission’s research agency “Forest Research”. Their priorities are strongly influenced by Government policy. For example, public access and environmental protection have dominated the activities of Forest Research over the last 20 years, but this has been at the expense of more “industrially-focused” research, such as improving the quality of timber for the construction industry, as a means of reducing imports. Importing construction timber alone costs the UK several billion pounds every year.
4. Research in universities usually revolves around short-term three-year PhD projects. The priorities of the research are usually determined by the funding body sponsoring the work. Universities are very dependent on access to long-term experiments managed by Forest Research. Universities have limited, if any, internal funding for forest research and have to depend on outside sources such as charitable trusts and EU.
UK’s Capability in Forest Research in Comparison with other Countries
5. Most EU member states have a greater capability in forest research to that in the UK. In particular, the importance of long-term research is better valued.
Threats to Forest Research in the UK
Problem of fluctuating budgets
6. Forest research in the UK has to be supported by a stable funding stream to allow long-term studies to continue. This has never been more important with growing concerns over the putative effects of climate change on the forestry industry.
Lack of research council support
7. None of the research councils in the UK directly support forest research. The Natural Environmental Research Council (NERC) will only consider forest research that is strongly environmental in nature and involves native species. The research councils effectively set the priorities of research in Britain that cover a wide range of social, medical and scientific issues. Given that the UK is one of the biggest importers of timber in the world, it is surprising that forestry does not feature as a key theme for research councils. It could be questioned why there is not a specific research council for forestry related issues.
Preponderance for research to have an “environmental” rather than “commercial” focus
8. A substantial proportion of “land-based” research expenditure in Britain today is currently on environmentally related issues. While protecting the environment is important, we also need to address the issue domestic timber production as global use continues to rise. The UK already imports over 80% of its requirements for timber and timber products, and will increasingly become vulnerable to global markets when demand overtakes supply. With world population increasing by around 3% per year, a corresponding rise in demand for wood is inevitable, and this will be exacerbated by the rapid industrialisation of countries such as China and India. It is important the research in the UK into improving our domestic timber quality and supply is not overlooked, particularly in areas such as tree breeding and timber properties.
Dr Andrew D Cameron
6 June 2011