Climate Change Plan: monitoring report 2019

Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry

The LULUCF sector as a whole is a net sink, rather than source, of greenhouse gases. Based on the most recent (2017) greenhouse gas inventory, the sector was sequestering a net 0.3 MtCO₂e in 1990. Since then, there has been a significant increase in net sequestration, up to 5.4 MtCO₂e in 2017. 

The Plan sets out the following three “policy outcomes” for the LULUCF sector:

1. We will introduce a stepped increase in the annual woodland creation rates from 2020‑2021 to enhance the contribution that trees make to reducing emissions through sequestering carbon.

2. Increase the use of sustainably sourced wood fibre to reduce emissions by encouraging the construction industry to increase its use of wood products where appropriate.

3. To enhance the contribution of peatland to carbon storage, we will support an increase in the annual rate of peatland restoration, from 10,000 hectares in 2017‑2018 to 20,000 hectares per year thereafter.

Forestry

• Forestry statistics for woodland creation  and timber are published annually. 
• For other indicators Forestry Commission Scotland, local government and industry data have been used to report against the output indicators and implementation indicators as reported in this chapter.
• Figures reported in this chapter show that the area of new woodland planting in 2018-2019 was 58% higher than the previous year and surpassing the stated target of 10,000 hectares. 
• Grant funding application levels for 2019-2020 suggest that this positive trend will continue, and the Programme for Government said the Scottish Government would seek to create 12,000 hectares of new woodland in 2019-2020.
• A new approach to woodland creation grant funding proposals was introduced last year and this has helped to support an increase in woodland planting. 
• Figures on use of timber products in construction also demonstrate progress towards meeting the targets as set out in the Climate Change Plan. 

Peat

• In 2018-2019; 5,800 hectares of peatland were restored through Peatland ACTION, delivering the largest annual area into restoration so far in the programme. Similarly, there were 72,700 hectares covered by feasibility studies in 2018-2019 – the largest annual coverage so far in the programme. The longer term pipeline for peatland restoration is healthy and action has been taken to increase the capacity of contractors, land managers and the project team; and to extend the working window within the annualised timeframe for delivering restoration work. There is good scope to deliver the longer term climate change target for restoration. There have been improvements in data collection and analysis this year, with the formation of a project data and information group in October 2018.

Output Indicator For Policy Outcome 1: 

Number of hectares of woodland created.

	Until 2019-2020	From 2020-2021	From 2022-2023	From 2024-2025
Ha created	10,000	12,000	14,000	15,000

Most Recent Data: 11,200 hectares for the period 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019.

Data Source(s): Official Statistics released in June 2019^[1].

On Track: Yes.

Commentary: 

• Forestry statistics for woodland creation are published annually. These are the figures for the period 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019. Figures on woodland created after March 2019 are not available. 
• Scotland was responsible for 84% of new woodland creation in the UK in 2018-2019.
• Plans and approvals for 2019-2020 suggest that new planting will remain on track for this policy outcome, and the Scottish Government has said it will seek to exceed the 2019-2020 indicator by 2,000 hectares.

Implementation Indicator For Policy Outcome 1: 

Area of new woodland created with grant scheme support.

Most Recent Data: 10,137 hectares for the period 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019.

Data Source(s): Official Statistics released in June 2019^[1].

Commentary: 

Forestry statistics for woodland creation are published annually. These are the figures for the period 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019. Figures on woodland created after March 2019 are not available. 

Scotland was responsible for 84% of new woodland creation in the UK in 2018-2019.

Plans and approvals for 2019-2020 suggest that new planting will remain on track for this policy outcome and the Programme for Government said the Scottish Government would seek to create 12,000 hectares of new woodland in 2019-2020.

Implementation Indicator For Policy Outcome 1: 

Percentage of applications that are processed within processing time agreements

Most Recent Data: N/A

Data Source(s): N/A

Commentary: 

• The Forestry Grant Scheme Customer Charter was introduced in March 2018; at the same time, new Forestry Grant Scheme applicant guidance was introduced, detailing changes to the application process to deliver shorter case approval times.
• The Charter set out the Customer Service Standards for handling of applications and capital claims for grant under the Forestry Grant Scheme within the Scottish Rural Development Programme 2014–2020. This Charter committed all participants, including Forestry Commission Scotland, the Scottish Government Rural Payments and Inspection Division, consultees and applicants/claimants, to deal with applications and capital claims in a business-like manner with the objective of meeting the agreed target times. 
• For Forestry Commission Scotland, the agreed target times were as follows: to send a draft contract to the applicant within 13 weeks of accepting a completed and submitted application, provided it meets the eligibility criteria and follows published guidance; and, to send a draft contract to the applicant within 15 weeks, where there is a need to request further information from applicants in order to process the application. 
• In Scotland, forestry was fully devolved to Scottish Ministers on 1 April 2019 and two new agencies of the Scottish Government were created: Scottish Forestry to support the delivery of the Scottish Government’s priorities for Scotland’s forests through guidance, advice, incentives and regulations, and by advising ministers on forest policy; and Forestry and Land Scotland to manage national forests and land on behalf of Scottish Ministers.
• This data was intended to be available from November 2018, but due to complications with the transition of IT systems from Forestry Commission Scotland to Scottish Forestry, this data is not yet available. 

Implementation Indicator For Policy Outcome 1: 

Area of new woodland created on the national forest estate. 

Most Recent Data: 1,030 hectares from 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019.

Data Source(s): Official Statistics released in June 2019^[1].

Commentary:

• During the period of reporting, Forest Enterprise Scotland (FES) was responsible for managing Scotland’s national forests and land on behalf of Scottish Ministers. This responsibility now lies with Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS). 
• A Strategy for Woodland Creation on Scotland’s national forests and land was published in August 2018 and sets out FES’s (now FLS) aim to create 3,250 hectares of woodland in the period September 2016 to March 2021; This equates to a rate of around 650 hectares per year, with up to 250 hectares of that woodland being on newly acquired former coalfield and derelict sites as part of long-term restoration and remediation of these sites. 

Implementation Indicator For Policy Outcome 1: 

Number of promotional events held.

Most Recent Data: 20 events held from 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019. 

Data Source(s): Forestry Commission Scotland data^[2].

Commentary: 

• In the period April 2018 to March 2019, Forestry Commission Scotland either hosted or initiated approximately 20 events across Scotland. This included a range of event formats, from small scale, on-farm demonstration days, to large scale National Events (e.g. the Royal Highland Show).
• While some of these events were organised and hosted by Forestry Commission Scotland, others were hosted and facilitated by partners e.g. Central Scotland Green Network, National Parks and Soil Association Scotland.
• These events aimed to promote woodland creation and discuss some of the real and perceived challenges around planting new woodland and integrating woodlands within existing businesses e.g. farming. They also provided information on the Forestry Grant Scheme and the Woodland Carbon Code. The Code is a potential vehicle for attracting additional investment into woodland creation projects.
• Events were generally well attended by a mixture of stakeholders, including farmers, land managers, and forestry students.
• In Scotland, forestry was fully devolved to Scottish Ministers on 1 April 2019 and two new agencies of the Scottish Government were created: Scottish Forestry to support the delivery of the Scottish Government’s priorities for Scotland’s forests through guidance, advice, incentives and regulations, and by advising ministers on forest policy; and Forestry and Land Scotland to manage national forests and land on behalf of Scottish Ministers. Therefore in future years this data will be provided by Scottish Forestry.

Implementation Indicator For Policy Outcome 1: 

Number of woodland creation projects that have been issued with a UK Forestry Standard non-compliance notice within the first 10 years following creation.

Most Recent Data: 1 project issued with a notice from 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019.

Data Source(s): Forestry Commission Scotland data^[2].

Commentary: 

• Formal UK Forestry Standard compliance procedures were introduced in April 2018. 
• In addition to helping enforce grant contract conditions, the procedures require significant breaches of the standard to be recorded and for corrective action to be taken. Where incidents of serious non-compliance are identified, they may be included in a national register and reported to professional bodies such as the Institute of Chartered Foresters, grant funding may also be reclaimed and/or regulatory approval may be suspended.
• Less serious cases of non-compliance are dealt with through the management of grant agreements.
• In Scotland, forestry was fully devolved to Scottish Ministers on 1 April 2019 and two new agencies of the Scottish Government were created: Scottish Forestry to support the delivery of the Scottish Government’s priorities for Scotland’s forests through guidance, advice, incentives and regulations, and by advising ministers on forest policy; and Forestry and Land Scotland to manage national forests and land on behalf of Scottish Ministers. Therefore in future years this data will be provided by Scottish Forestry.

Implementation Indicator For Policy Outcome 1: 

Number of Planning Authorities with current Forest and Woodland Strategies.   

Most Recent Data: 31 local authorities with current Strategies in March 2019.

Data Source(s): External data from local government^[2].

Commentary: 

• Under the Planning (Scotland) Act 2019, planning authorities are required to prepare forestry and woodland strategies. The Act outlines the purpose of these strategies, including identifying woodlands of high nature conservation value and setting out policies and proposals as to the: development of forestry and woodlands; protection and enhancement of woodlands; resilience of woodlands to climate change; and expansion of woodland of a range of types to provide multiple benefits. 
• The delivery of planning services in Scotland lies with 32 planning authorities and 2 national park authorities.  
• All planning authorities (bar one) in Scotland have an existing forestry and woodland strategy in some form: some have been developed in partnership (e.g. for Stirling and Clackmannan), others have been developed by the strategic development planning authority (e.g. the Clyde Plan). 
• Both national parks also have forest and woodland strategies in place.
• Forestry and woodland strategies are generally reviewed and updated every 5 years, as recommended in The Right Tree in the Right Place3, and some are currently undergoing that process.
• All of them identify the area where new woodland would best deliver the planning authorities’/national park’s objectives and the areas that are more sensitive to woodland creation. They all provide a mechanism to inform local and regional woodland expansion to deliver the Climate Change Plan.

Output Indicator For Policy Outcome 2: 

Annual volume (in millions of cubic metres) of Scottish produced sawn wood and panel boards used in construction (extrapolated from UK figures).

	2021-2022	2026-2027	2031-2032
Volume	2.6 million cubic metres	2.8 million cubic metres	3.0 million cubic metres

Most Recent Data: 2.33 million cubic metres used in construction in 2018.

Data Source(s): Official Statistics released in September 2019^[4]. 

On Track: Too early to make assessment.

Commentary: 

• Official Statistics on timber are published annually in September. These provide the best dataset to estimate volume of Scottish timber used in construction.
• The figure reported here, of 2.33 million cubic metres of timber used in construction in 2018, is based on these statistics and is an update on the figure provided in the last Climate Change Plan Monitoring Report, which was based on less comprehensive data available at the time.
• It is too early to see any trend develop (although it is encouraging that the volume is increasing) and it will not be until 2022 that data will be available to estimate whether or not the target is on track.

Implementation Indicator For Policy Outcome 2: 

Number of knowledge exchange events held each year involving members of the construction industry e.g. designers, specifiers and engineers.

Most Recent Data: 9 knowledge exchange events held from 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019.

Data Source(s): Forestry Commission Scotland data^[2].

Commentary: 

The following activities have been focussed on helping inform construction professionals and students on effectively using timber products in construction:

• Annual Royal Incorporation of Architects Scotland and 3 regional “Best use of wood” awards. 
• Architecture and Design Scotland “Best use of wood” exhibition at the Lighthouse in Glasgow and other locations. 
• Strategic Integrated Research in Timber programme annual update seminar. 
• Continuance of funding support and digitisation of “Materials Considerations: library of sustainable building materials” at the Lighthouse in Glasgow. 
• Initiation of collaborative project with Construction Scotland and Edinburgh Napier University on commercialisation of manufacturing of engineered wood products in Scotland. 
• Commission research at Edinburgh Napier University on opportunities for timber products in building refurbishment and maximum use of Scottish timber in housing. 

In future years this data will be provided by Scottish Forestry (as above).

Implementation Indicator For Policy Outcome 2: 

Annual Timber Association figures for the adoption of timber frames for new build houses across the UK.

Most Recent Data: Almost 29% of new build houses across UK in 2018.

Data Source(s): Structural Timber Association “Timber frame construction market report (UK) 2018”^[5].

Commentary: 

• The housing market is one of the largest markets for wood products in construction. An increase in timber frame construction can be considered to be an increase in the use of timber overall in construction.
• The Structural Timber Association publishes annual statistics on the timber frame market which allow progress to be tracked. 
• Figures suggest that there has been a small increase in the timber frame share of the UK housing market from 28.4% in 2016 to almost 29% in 2018.

Output Indicator For Policy Outcome 3: 

Number of hectares of restored peatland per year.

	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022
Output	10,000ha	20,000ha	20,000ha	20,000ha	20,000ha

Most Recent Data: 5,800 hectares on the road to recovery in 2018-2019.

Data Source(s): Peatland Action Funded Works - Scottish Natural Heritage Grants database^[6].

On Track: Using Peatland ACTION alone as the measure then this indicator is not on track at present though recoverable in the long term. 

Commentary:  

• A high demand has been identified for peatland restoration through feasibility studies. 
• The estimate for peatland restoration through Peatland Action in 2018-19 was 8,335 hectares. Actual restoration was 5,800 hectares of peatland, partly due to severe weather in the uplands during the restricted late autumn/winter window for delivering restoration, however also due to a lack of contractor availability.  Action has been taken to increase the capacity of contractors, land managers and the project team – and to extend the annual window for delivering restoration work – and we are seeing a consistent increase in demand and capacity. 
• There is scope to catch up with the long term target in future years through increases in capacity (budget, land manager, contractor, and project team) given that there is a high demand for peatland restoration demonstrated through feasibility studies. The most important action to secure this capacity would be to secure a longer term approach to the funding of projects.

A full set of information for 2019-2020 will be available after the end of the financial year. There is up to 10,000 hectares of planned delivery for 2019-2020.

Implementation Indicator For Policy Outcome 3: 

Number of hectares on the road to recovery through Peatland Action at the conclusion of the preceding financial year.

Most Recent Data: 5,800 hectares on the road to recovery for year 2018-2019. 

Since the start of the project to 31 March 2019 an estimated 19,000 ha have been restored.

Data Source(s): Grants Data base Scottish Natural Heritage^[6]. 

Commentary: 

• Peatland Action is scaling up in a phased way in order to allow for a sustainable increase in the capacity of land managers, contractors and the project team, to the level required to meet the long term Climate Change Plan target. 
• Progress influencing contractors to release/expand capacity for peatland restoration work is adversely affecting progress on the ground, with 1,900 hectares of offered delivery for 2018-2019 slipping into 2019-2020.  
• It will be possible to provide data on actual restoration once restoration is complete, as this is a long term process. Date of restoration activity is currently the only measure.

Implementation Indicator For Policy Outcome 3: 

Total number of applications received for Peatland Action restoration project funding.

	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025
No. of grant applications	100	120	130	140	150	150	150	150

Most Recent Data: 84 grant applications in 2018-2019.

133 applications in 2019-2020 – TBC at end of financial year.

Data Source(s): Grants database Scottish Natural Heritage^[6]. 

Commentary: 

Demand for Peatland Action funding is still increasing year-on-year as demonstrated by the increased numbers of applications and a pipeline of viable restoration work supported by feasibility studies. The number of grant applications is increasing and is an indicator of the success of interest in the scheme. However, the number of applications does not reflect the areas restored or necessarily indicate an increase in restored peatlands as grants will vary for the areas proposed for restoration, and fewer (larger) grant applications can be a more effective way to manage the programme. To provide consistency of figures and avoid confusion it is clearer to provide data at the end of the financial year rather than at the end of the calendar year.

Implementation Indicator For Policy Outcome 3: 

Number of projects approved for funding from the Peatland Action restoration project funding.

Date	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025
No. of successful applications	90	110	115	120	125	130	130	130

Most Recent Data: 2018-2019 - 66 projects were approved for funding (59 new and 7 for deferred/subsequent phases in 2018-19).

Data Source(s): Grants database Scottish Natural Heritage^[6].

Commentary:

• For 2018-2019 projects, the conversion rate of applications to projects was below that anticipated in the plan. Scottish Natural Heritage now have more dedicated project officers supporting the application process and increasing the quality of applications; this should increase the conversion rate.
• The indicator is useful to assess the quality of applications received.
• To provide consistency of figures and avoid confusion it is clearer to provide data at the end of the financial year rather than at the end of the calendar year.

Implementation Indicator For Policy Outcome 3: 

Number and area of restoration feasibility plans supported through the Peatland Action programme. 

Most Recent Data: 28 plans were supported in 2018-2019 covering 72,769 hectares. 

12 plans supported in 2018, covering 50,000 hectares.

Data Source(s): Grants Database Scottish Natural Heritage, and for 2019-2020 the Peatland Action Feasibility Study contract database^[6]. 

Commentary:

• In 2018-2019, 33 projects were offered through funding agreements covering 171,825 hectares, of these a reduced amount were taken forward by applicants. The constraints of time and weather meant that for 2018-2019 some projects were not completed in the year. In 2019-2020, Scottish Natural Heritage is undertaking feasibility studies in-house, rather than via grants to landowners. This should enable a better overview of feasibility study activity to allow for improved project planning. 
• Feasibility studies demonstrate that there is viable demand to deliver the longer term Climate Change Plan target for 20,000 hectares restoration per annum. This indicator strongly supports progress as it is being used to line up future projects and enables the programme to create good quality applications and also assess the potential for restoration for future years. Reporting will be more accurate at the end of the financial year.

Implementation Indicator For Policy Outcome 3: 

Number of contractors trained to carry out the restoration. 

Most Recent Data: 23 contractors trained in 2018-19. 

Since starting in October 2017 there have been 127 attendees (all categories of trainees) on training courses.

Data Source(s): Training Data base^[6]. 

Commentary: 

This is a critical component of developing the longer term capacity required to meet climate change targets for peatland restoration. A training programme for contractors is now established and attendance can be reported at the end of each financial year.  In the period April – June 2019 a further 9 contractors were trained. These figures do not include the informal training that takes place between contractors and project officers which is difficult to measure but enables the sharing of expertise and good practice.

Implementation Indicator For Policy Outcome 3: 

Number of land managers / consultants trained through the Peatland Action Programme.

Most Recent Data: 93 land managers / consultants trained in 2018-2019 encompassing private, public and third sector. Since starting in October 2017 there have been 127 attendees (all categories of trainees) on training courses.

Data Source(s): Training data base^[6]. 

Commentary

A training programme for land managers/consultants is now established and interest is high. The numbers in most recent data do not include Scottish Natural Heritage / SEPA staff. This does not include the informal training that takes place between contractors and project officers which is difficult to measure but enables the sharing of expertise and good practice.

Implementation Indicator For Policy Outcome 3:

Number of dedicated policy officers.

Most Recent Data: 13.1 FTE Project Officers.  

Data Source(s): Peatland Action Staff Records^[6]. 

Commentary: 

• The dedicated project team increased to 30 by the end of 2018. The enhanced size of the dedicated team is designed to progress towards the long term 20,000 hectare per annum target in future years.
• The Dedicated Project Officers within this team are key to the delivery of Peatland Action. Project Officers work with land managers and contractors to ensure applications are appropriate and delivered to a high specification and supporting applications to the programme and delivering the training programme.  
• Project officers are employed both by Scottish Natural Heritage and hosted by partner bodies, including both National Parks and a wide range of local Environmental Third Sector Organisations.