September 19, 2019

Better forest management means better timber

Good forest management can both protect the environment and help meet the growing demand for timber from the building trade, argues Nigel Buckley-Ryan, Södra’s UK Sales Director, Merchants. As pressure on the world’s finite resources continues to intensify, timber suppliers face a growing problem: how do we meet the needs

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Erith Park Development Is Complete

The Larner Road estate area of London has been successfully transformed into the new mixed-tenure community of Erith Park with the help of Orbit, Wates Residential and Bexley Council. Seven dated tower blocks have been replaced with 587 new homes, as a mix of houses and mid-rise apartments. The tenure-blind scheme,

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Our digital age and the concerns for our health

It’s fair to say that most of us have a relaxing ‘go-to’ position that we’ve adopted over time at our desks, in our office chair. Do you lean forward with a rounded back whilst at your computer or, perhaps you allow your feet dangle off the ground? If so, the

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Issue 322 : Nov 2024

September 19, 2019

Better forest management means better timber

Good forest management can both protect the environment and help meet the growing demand for timber from the building trade, argues Nigel Buckley-Ryan, Södra’s UK Sales Director, Merchants. As pressure on the world’s finite resources continues to intensify, timber suppliers face a growing problem: how do we meet the needs of consumers and protect our planet at the same time? In my view, good forest management is the main way to address these apparently conflicting needs. Some may think that trees simply grow on their own and that forests therefore don’t need to be carefully managed. However, innovative and responsible forest management can make a significant difference, both to the environment and to the quality and supply of timber. So, what should good forest management look like? Nurturing healthy saplings As you would expect, it starts at the beginning with the careful selection of the seedlings that, over the next 50-70 years, will grow to maturity, create your forest, and provide the reliable supply of timber on which your customers depend. At Södra, for example, the basis of our Falkenburg nursery (where 35 million saplings passed through last year) derives from some of the best quality trees in the world. The programme does not and has never used genetic modification in any way, but rather helps ensure that all desirable traits of these selected spruce are transferred to the seeds, and then to future trees. This helps produce higher quality trees and ultimately improves the overall quality of the end-product. Encouraging good root growth Saplings themselves should be planted in conditions that will ensure strong, healthy root growth. One way of doing this is to line the pots in which they are grown with copper. This prevents roots from spiralling downwards in a corkscrew shape. Instead, the roots spread out to the edges of the pot. This trait continues when they are finally planted in the forest, which makes them less susceptible to storm damage. Before this stage, once saplings reach a height of about 15cms, they should be trimmed and generally well looked after. Errant branches should be cut off to create a nice straight sapling, maximising its chances of growing into a strong, healthy tree. As they grow, saplings will continue to need careful nurturing to keep them healthy and pest-free. However, this shouldn’t mean resorting to chemicals. At Södra, for instance, we have developed our own chemical-free pest deterrent called Cambiguard. Healthy forests lead to quality timber supply Health forests mean health trees that grow for longer, benefiting the environment as they do by absorbing and locking away harmful carbon dioxide. And typically, longer growth results in bigger, stronger, better quality trees which, in turn, means higher yields of quality timber.  Once saplings are ready to be planted out, good forest management involves planting them in a location that will offer sufficient light, water and nutrients for continued healthy growth. Responsible forest owners measure water tables regularly and make sure they have a good, up-to-date understanding of what their forest actually consists of. Modern technology can help here. For example, many of today’s foresters now use drones to view the forest. Amongst other things, this enables them to identify which areas need to be thinned and which areas will work well left as nature strips. The role of thinning and nature strips Thinning is an essential element of good forest management and consists of removing slower-growing or defective trees, so providing more space and sunlight for the remaining trees. The subsequent improved supply of soil nutrients, water and light results in bigger, healthier trees. Nature strips also play an important role in forest husbandry. These are areas of forest left untouched so that wildlife can flourish, which helps maintain a balanced forest ecosystem and contribute to the overall health of the forest. Conservation and increased production can go hand in hand In my view, a long-term, evidence-based approach is critical to successful forest management. At Södra our systematic approach over the last 20 years has led to both an increase in voluntarily protected areas with high conservation values and greater production. Over the next five years we’re going a step further and aiming to use our ongoing research and development to achieve a 20 per cent higher annual rate of forest growth while still meeting our sustainability targets. This ambition demonstrates that conservation and improved productivity can go hand-in-hand. Indeed, many forest owners find that, in time, less invasive forestry methods lead to forests with better growth and increased wood volume. This translates into the reliable supply that is so important for builders’ merchants and other timber buyers, particularly in the current climate of uncertainty around the outcome of Brexit. Care with harvesting As they mature, trees will continue to need monitoring to make sure they are still receiving an adequate supply of water, light and soil nutrients. Generally, it takes around 50-70 years for a tree to fully mature and reach its full height, and only once a tree has stopped absorbing harmful carbon dioxide (and locked it away forever), will it be harvested. As with the earlier stages of a tree’s life, good forest management can minimise negative environmental impacts at the harvesting stage. For example, it is important to protect the forest floor and reduce soil damage by constructing temporary roadways and laying down branches. It is also important to identify important habitats that should be preserved. The end results By managing forests in the careful, responsible way I have outlined forest owners can make a significant difference to the environment and, at the same time, provide a reliable supply of the sustainable and quality timber that’s increasingly in demand to meet today’s construction needs.

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Erith Park Development Is Complete

The Larner Road estate area of London has been successfully transformed into the new mixed-tenure community of Erith Park with the help of Orbit, Wates Residential and Bexley Council. Seven dated tower blocks have been replaced with 587 new homes, as a mix of houses and mid-rise apartments. The tenure-blind scheme, supported by grant funding from the GLA, comprises 80% affordable homes, a mix of affordable rent and shared ownership. In this area of low sales value, there is no subsidy to the scheme from the 20% homes for sale and they are included to ensure a mixed, aspirational and sustainable community. Maggie McCann, Orbit’s director of regeneration and partnerships thanked partners and residents for their contributions to the new community. Building on the success of Erith Park, Orbit and Wates are now embarking on the regeneration of the neighbouring Arthur Street. “The event marked a momentous achievement for both the project team and community. We were able to celebrate the official completion of Erith Park after years of hard work, and also showcase our next venture, Park East,” said Maggie McCann, director of regeneration and partnerships, Orbit. “Many of the Erith Park team will be bringing their experience to Park East and we are confident we can deliver yet another thriving community and leave a lasting impact in Erith.” Maggie invited Councillor Teresa O’Neill OBE, leader of the London Borough of Bexley, to join residents in unveiling the name of the new development. The 3.5m brick sculpture reflects the site’s history of Victorian brickmaking and incorporates decorative bricks made by residents. Hidden inside is the shape of a Stone Age tool, a reminder of the important Palaeolithic archaeology of the site. “Our vision for Erith Park was to create delightful contemporary homes in a beautiful new neighbourhood. This event was where it finally all came together and we can confirm that, together, we’ve created a brilliant new community we can all be proud of,” added Paul Nicholls, managing director, Wates Residential.

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Our digital age and the concerns for our health

It’s fair to say that most of us have a relaxing ‘go-to’ position that we’ve adopted over time at our desks, in our office chair. Do you lean forward with a rounded back whilst at your computer or, perhaps you allow your feet dangle off the ground? If so, the fact is that it could be causing long term damage within your body, leading to serious health issues. Health researchers have looked into the negative effects of technology on our posture. The term ‘tech neck’ has been given to the condition caused by spending long periods of time on computers and tablets. Be aware of aches and creases developing across your neck and chest areas – it could be ‘tech neck’. Learn how to look after your posture and ensure your alignment at your desk is a health one. Here’s our guide… The worrying health issue of bad posture Bad posture can not only give you ‘tech neck’, it can lead to muscle problems and strains in other areas of the body. In fact, poor posture is known to be one of the major causes of back problems. It depends on your posture as to which muscle groups feel the strain. Even if you’re not experiencing problems now, improving your posture is something that you should consider to prevent issues from arising in the future. Unfortunately, another main cause of back and neck misalignment is spending prolonged time at a desk — something that many of us can’t avoid. Research has even shown that sitting time has a positive correlation with lower back pain and neck-shoulder pain intensity. You’ll be pleased to hear that there are some actions that you can take to maintain a good posture when you’re at work. A guide to assessing the posture at your desk The first step you can take to bettering your posture is being aware of it. This pushes you to make active changes and recognise when you could improve. Analyse the position of your body whilst at your desk Positioning your body in the right way at work is important, as it’s possible that you’ll be sitting or standing like this for many hours. The way that we sit also has an effect on the way we walk, so it’s important to keep an eye on it. Good posture is where the body is in perfect alignment. This is where your spine can maintain its natural curvature and it isn’t strained. The best way to sit or stand in this way is to imagine there is a string attached to the top of your head that’s pulling you up. This should lengthen your stance, improve the way that you’re positioned, and stop you from slouching. You might find that slouching is temporarily comfortable, but over time it can lead to strain on already sensitised muscles and soft tissues. If your job requires sitting down for a prolonged period, what should you be doing? Try and sit back in the chair rather than perching on the edge, as this offers your back some support and again, stops you from slouching. Do not sit as far back so that your feet dangle though. Letting your feet dangle can cause problems. If you sit on a high stool at work for example, tuck them in and rest them on the support. Positioning yourself so that your legs hang over the side of your chair causes gravity to pull your feet towards the ground and this tilts your pelvis backwards, which can lead to pain. Your shoulders should also be in a relaxed position to offer relief for shoulder pain. Avoid hunching them up so that you can lean on the arms of your chair or rolling them forwards.  Promote a healthy posture using specialist equipment Not only do we need to sit in the right way, but we need to be using equipment that supports our good posture. Speak to your employer if you think that you need extra support or that your current equipment is affecting your posture. If you have a desk job, a suitably adjusted chair that supports that inward curve of your spine is important. Arm rests can help provide support, but they need to be the correct height. If they’re too high, this can cause raised shoulders, and if they’re too low, it can cause leaning. As we mentioned before, make sure that your chair is the right height so that your feet are flat on the floor and your knees are parallel to, or just lower than, your hips. Your screen should be directly in front of you, around an arm’s length away with the top of the screen at your eye level. A neck rest can also be used to help you relax your neck when you’re not typing. If you use the telephone a lot at work, you might find that a cordless headset would be better suited. This is because you might find yourself cradling your phone between your ear and shoulder, which can add unnecessary strain to our neck, upper back and shoulders.     Take breaks from your desk and move around It’s important to stay mobile. Even if you are sitting with good posture, being sat in the same place for a prolonged period can still be harmful. And, moving around at work has other fitness benefits too. In fact, when asked to interrupt their sitting at work every half an hour throughout the day, overweight/obese office workers showed a 32% reduction in lower back discomfort, compared to seated work. But how can you keep moving in your office space throughout the day? Standing during phone call. Taking a break from the computer every 30 minutes and stretching your legs. Walk to a colleague’s desk instead of emailing them. Doing some desk exercises.

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