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Letter: In defence of burning wood

Published 12 October 2016

From James Pringle

Regarding the carbon accounting scam you report (24 September, p 20), it should be recognised that mature trees take in less carbon per hectare than young, fast-growing ones. Restocking woodland after harvesting seems to be a better sequestration bet than simply leaving trees standing.

Better still is to use the harvested timber in furniture and buildings. That has the added benefit of displacing carbon-heavy materials such as concrete.

Galashiels, Selkirkshire, UK

Issue no. 3095 published 15 October 2016

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