A FOREST for Cornwall which could cost up to £30 million has been revealed to be the flagship project of Cornwall Council’s climate change action plan.

The authority has been drawing up the action plan since January when the council voted to declare a climate emergency and an aim to become carbon neutral by 2030.

Next week the council’s cabinet will be asked to approve the climate change action plan and carbon neutral action plan.

The 63-page climate change action plan includes a number of measures that the council intends to implement to reduce carbon emissions and tackle climate change.

But the flagship project is the plan for a Forest for Cornwall with the plan stating: “We will develop a mass woodland tree planting programme, once fully  developed a Forest for Cornwall covering approximately 8,000 hectares (to be confirmed by further calculations), or about two per cent of Cornwall’s land mass.”

The document continues: “Natural climate solutions offer an important opportunity to deliver environmental growth in Cornwall that will both mitigate and help us adapt to climate change. Our first flagship project is to deliver a substantial increase of canopy cover in Cornwall, through the planting of trees on our streets, in our hedgerows and through the creation of new woodlands and forested areas.

“Over time this forest would sequester potentially in the order of one per cent of Cornwall’s annual carbon footprint (2016). As our carbon footprint decreases to near-zero levels this carbon draw down will become critical. The rate of draw down increases as the trees grow; making it imperative that we plant the Forest for Cornwall urgently as net emission reductions are not likely to be accounted for within the first five years according to the Forestry Commission.”

The report states that the estimated cost of the scheme to deliver 8,000ha would be between £25 million and £30 million.

It says that bids are being prepared for Government supported national tree planting schemes.

It adds: “We will also consider developing a voluntary carbon offset scheme for Cornwall to help fund tree planting through the sale of Woodland Carbon Units to organisations wishing to evidence carbon neutral operations; this could involve partners such as the Local Nature Partnership, landowners, the National Trust, the Duchy, South West Water and the Forestry Commission.”