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The Forestry Commission, Natural Resources Wales and the Forest Service owned or managed 27% of the total woodland area in the UK in 2018 (Table 1.3). This proportion ranged from 16% of the woodland area in England to 55% in Northern Ireland.
Table 1.3 Area of woodland in the UK by ownership, 2014-2018
Ownership | England | Wales | Scotland | Northern Ireland | UK |
thousand hectares | |||||
FC/NRW/FS woodland1 | |||||
2014 | 215 | 117 | 477 | 62 | 871 |
2015 | 215 | 117 | 478 | 62 | 871 |
2016 | 215 | 117 | 470 | 62 | 864 |
2017 | 214 | 117 | 469 | 62 | 863 |
2018 | 214 | 117 | 470 | 62 | 864 |
Private sector woodland2 | |||||
2014 | 1087 | 189 | 947 | 50 | 2273 |
2015 | 1091 | 189 | 954 | 50 | 2283 |
2016 | 1091 | 190 | 965 | 50 | 2295 |
2017 | 1091 | 191 | 968 | 50 | 2301 |
2018 | 1093 | 191 | 975 | 50 | 2309 |
Total Woodland | |||||
2014 | 1302 | 306 | 1424 | 111 | 3143 |
2015 | 1305 | 306 | 1432 | 112 | 3155 |
2016 | 1305 | 307 | 1435 | 112 | 3159 |
2017 | 1306 | 308 | 1438 | 112 | 3164 |
2018 | 1307 | 308 | 1445 | 113 | 3173 |
Source: Forestry Commission, Natural Resources Wales, Forest Service, National Forest Inventory.
Notes:
1. FC: Forestry Commission (England and Scotland), NRW: Natural Resources Wales, FS: Forest Service (Northern Ireland). NRW estimates only relate to woodland formerly owned/managed by FC Wales.
2. Private sector: all other woodland. Includes woodland previously owned/managed by the Countryside Council for Wales and the Environment Agency in Wales, other publicly owned woodland (e.g. owned by local authorities) and privately owned woodland.
3. Figures for England, Wales and Scotland are based on data obtained from the National Forest Inventory (NFI) and adjusted for new planting, but at present no adjustment is made for woodland recently converted to another land use. Further information on how the figures have been estimated is available in the Sources chapter.
4. Northern Ireland figures are obtained from the Northern Ireland Woodland Register.
5. Areas as at 31 March.
Sources chapter: Woodland area
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