Concern over destruction of Derbyshire woodland after heavy machinery spotted 'tearing down' trees

Handley Wood, near Belper, is a popular spot for walkers and in spring is covered in bluebells making it a haven for various wildlife.

However, in recent weeks, witnesses have noticed tree felling being carried out in the area.

Ted Traska, Vice Chair of Blackbrook Residents Group, raised his concerns over the work after a recent visit to the woodland earlier this month in which he described as it being ‘ravaged’ by heavy machinery.

Speaking afterwards, he said: “Last week, [Handley Wood] was ravaged by heavy machinery, tearing down many deciduous trees, stripping them and leaving the debris littering the ground.

"The trunks were sawn into lengths and taken away. It does not seem to be a management process, rather a simple example of stripping woodland for profit. Is the price of logs for woodburners a factor?

“Is this illegal? It is certainly not morally correct.”

Ted says that residents in nearby Blackbrook are worried that the work will destroy the ‘beautiful’ woodland, which is part of the Chatsworth estate owned by the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire.

He added: “The tracks for the vehicles must be about two feet across and they’ve just ploughed through the woods.

"It’d be nice if they’re actually managing the wood properly – we’ve got no worries about that – but we’re just worried that they’re going to scavenge the timber out of there, sell the timber, and just leave it unmanaged.”

A Chatsworth spokesperson said its foresty team is currently working in Handley Wood to restore native British woodland by the gradual removal of the non-native conifer trees, working which is part of an an approved management plan which has been agreed by the Forestry Commission, Natural England and other stakeholders.

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The team is removing small groups of woodland – a method called group shelterwood – to allow enough light to the woodland floor for the replanted oak and other light demanding native broad leaves to establish successfully.

It is also thinning other areas to improve the structure and long-term stability of the wood, as well as letting more light to the woodland floor to improve the diversity of the ground vegetation.

Handley Wood is designated as a PAWS (plantation on an ancient woodland site), which was replanted with a mixture of non-native conifers (larch Norway spruce and Scots pine) following clear felling in the 1950’s.

The spokesperson added: "We have targeted areas of larch trees where possible as they are at high risk from the disease pythophthora ramorun, which is prevalent in the local area.

"The timing of the forestry operations has been carefully considered to coincide with the driest part of the year as many parts of the woodland would be unworkable during the wetter winter months and would lead to unacceptable ground and soil damage.

"During the winter the forestry team will be replanting the small felled area with around 3000 native British hardwoods including oak, alder, and hornbeam.

"As part of the planning of the operations detailed ecological site surveys were carried out which identified a number of protected sites which have been preserved and excluded from the operational area using industry best practice.”

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