Top of the tree contest

Jan 10 2009 by Neil Atkinson, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

WOODLAND projects in Yorkshire and Humberside are being invited to step into the limelight and prove they are top of the tree.

The Royal Forestry Society has linked up with the Forestry Commission to launch a competition to recognise outstanding woods and green-themed community schemes.

The Excellence Awards are being piloted in the region in 2009, with other areas of England getting their turn later.

Local projects are being urged to put themselves in line for a first prize of £1,000.

Jeremy Dick, Woodland Officer with the Forestry Commission in Yorkshire and Humberside, said: “These are brilliant awards, recognising that forestry in the 21st century is about lots more than just growing timber.

“Yorkshire and Humberside has been chosen to pilot the scheme because we have such a strong forestry sector with a high level of community involvement.