A PLAN to make the Forest of Spey a ''working'' forest, where timber production works hand-in-hand with nature conservation, farming, tourism and recreation, was outlined yesterday.
Launched by Forestry Commission chairman Sir Peter Hutchison at Glenmore Forest Park visitor centre, near Aviemore, the initiative will be led by the Cairngorms Partnership and managed by Highland Birchwoods.
Sir Peter described a vision of the forest as ''not just tree cover but a mosaic of land uses in which woodland cover is extensive and dominant in the landscape and is interspersed with areas of moorland, farmland, wetlands, towns, and villages''.
He added: ''Jobs are vital to communities and ... we need to think about the number of families that forestry can sustain in the glen. The old adage 'a forest that pays is a forest that stays' is still apposite, and a major interest of the wider community is that these forests continue to produce high-quality timber into the future.''
Mr Denis Torley, the project offi cer, will promote the benefits of planting native woodlands and managing existing ones.
The Cairngorms Biodiversity Challenge Fund and the Forest of Spey Woodland Expansion Challenge Fund will help landowners to expand and manage woodlands, with landowners bidding for grants via competitive tendering.
The Forest of Spey includes the publicly-owned Glenmore forest, the privately-owned Rothiemurchus, and the RSPB's Abernethy Forest Reserve.
q Most UK consumers do not understand the real issues surrounding forestry management, according to a survey carried out for B&Q, the DIY retailer.
A spokesman said: ''Two-thirds of the world's forests have already disappeared and contrary to popular belief, the key to forest management is not necessarily the type of trees that are cut down - softwood versus tropical hardwoods - but rather the way our forests are managed.
''Consumers appear to be unaware of this fact and are discriminating against certain woods such as tropical hardwoods for the wrong reasons. Softwoods such as pine can also come from badly managed forests.''
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