THE current “fixation” with planting trees is not the rural answer to climate change, an agricultural expert has argued as he challenged the next Scottish Government into a rethink on the way forward.

NFU Scotland vice-president Andrew Connon insists that only a redefined approach to woodland expansion and forestry on agricultural land will achieve the results we are all striving to reach.

Connon believes such an overreliance is “naïve at best and certainly short-sighted, having the potential to be damaging in other economic, environmental and social aspects”.

He said: “I am receiving fresh calls every week from despairing farmers and crofters across Scotland telling me of another farm or estate destined for tree planting.

“The more of Scotland’s limited productive land that shifts from farming to forestry, the more we are likely to simply offshore our emissions or even increase our carbon footprint.

“In addition, land acquisitions for forestry, combined with the potential for carbon trading, are already creating inflated land prices that are outwith the reach of commercial farming activities whilst restricting opportunities for new entrants to the industry.”

NFU Scotland reaffirmed that it supports tree planting and its place in tackling the climate and biodiversity crises. And it reiterated that it is in favour of farm woodlands that integrate with existing farm enterprises.

It believes that that offers many benefits from mixed broadleaf, hardwood and conifer plantings without compromising food production and farm business viability regardless of land ownership or tenure.

Connon warned, though: “NFU Scotland remains opposed to whole farm afforestation on a commercial scale that reduces agricultural activity and food production whilst potentially accelerating land abandonment.”

READ MORE: 750-hectare forest in Scottish Borders on offer

NFU Scotland has been at pains to show its commitment to climate change and has been keen to champion those initiatives and the efforts of individual farmers who are making strides in this area.

Farmer Patrick Barbour, from Highland Perthshire, is one such after becoming Scotland’s climate-friendly farming champion in a competition organised by NFU Scotland’s Next Generation group and supported by Royal Bank of Scotland.

Barbour’s innovative three-minute video entry, filmed at Mains of Fincastle, near Pitlochry, illustrates the benefits of tree planting, species-rich grassland, rotational grazing for cattle and sheep and stitching nitrogen-fixing crops into pastures.

It is available to watch here.

Patrick’s sister Catherine and brother Robert also appear in the video to describe the family farm’s approach to sustainable farming.

Scotland’s farmers and crofters were invited to record on video the many steps they are taking to reduce emissions and deliver wider environmental benefits.

The panel of judges included Claire Taylor, political affairs editor at Scottish Farmer, and NFU Scotland’s Next Generation chair Peter Moss.

The judges described the video as inspiring and a perfect advert for the Scottish farming industry.

Barbour won a state-of-the-art drone with a tailored unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) upload and satellite imagery package from SoilEssentials.

He said: “We’re really pleased to win this as a family. It’s great for us to be able to share what we’ve been doing on the family farm here at Fincastle, and I hope people enjoy the video.”

Taylor added: “I was blown away by the quality of applications we received and the impressive ways in which Scottish farmers across the country are addressing climate change and biodiversity losses on their farms.”

This story originally appeared in The National.

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