North Yorkshire Council Has Cut Down 300 Trees for Kex Gill Diversion
North Yorkshire Council (NYC) has cut down around 300 trees as part of its planned diversion of the A59 to avoid Kex Gill.
The number of trees felled is my estimate, having done a rough count of the number of stumps. NYC themselves say they don’t know exactly how many trees they have cut down, but agreed that 300 was about right.
The tree-felling was done from 6th February to 23rd March 2023 – well into the nesting season. NYC say they left standing trees with bats or owls in them.
It is an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to intentionally take, damage or destroy the nest of any wild bird while it is being built or in use. That is not limited to owls and bats.
NYC say they are going to replant after they have finished building their road.
Kex Gill Realignment
NYC is spending £69 million to change the route of the A59 to avoid Kex Gill.
Trees have been felled immediately west of the A59 junction with Hall Lane/Shepherd Hill in a wood either side of Hall Beck, at least part of which was called Myer’s Wood.
NYC’s Draft Climate Change Strategy
In its draft Climate Change Strategy, NYC says it has three objectives.
1) Decreasing Greenhouse Gas Emissions
The A59 Kex Gill realignment is counter-productive to this objective, because there are very significant emissions embedded in the materials used for construction.
2) Preparing for a Changing Climate
NYC would argue that they have to move the A59 in case there are future landslips in Kex Gill.
3) Helping the Natural World on Which We Depend
You don’t help the natural world by bulldozing a wood.
The Climate Change Strategy envisages planting 37,000 hectares of new woodland by 2038.
2038 is a long way away, so are there any interim targets? And how long will it take for the woodland destroyed for the A59 diversion be replaced with equivalent mature trees?
Transport Emissions
We know that:
- total emissions in North Yorkshire were 5,829 ktCO2e in 2020 (p13 of NYC’s draft Strategy) and
- transport accounted for 28% of that figure, i.e. 1,632 ktCO2e
We know the objective for the York & North Yorkshire region in the Routemap to Carbon Negative is to be net zero by 2034.
It is therefore possible to set milestones along the way to net zero – for example, that transport emissions should be 816 ktCO2e by 2027 (half way through the period to 2034).
Missing Information
The missing information is:
- embedded emissions in A59 construction materials
- greenhouse gas emissions due to felling of Myer’s Wood
Without that information we don’t know exactly how unhelpful the A59 Kex Gill realignment is in relation to total transport emissions, nor the extra emissions cuts that will be needed to compensate for it. Nor does NYC.
We do know that it is unhelpful.