On-line bid to reduce impact of logging (From Darlington and Stockton Times)

On-line bid to reduce impact of logging

3:15pm Wednesday 13th March 2013 in News By Mark Foster

LOGGING trucks transporting timber in England’s largest county are being issued with the routes they must follow.

The idea behind the new online route map for North Yorkshire is to reduce the impact of the lorries on local communities and the environment.

It follows consultation between the county council, local communities and the timber industry and the map can be accessed at northyorks.gov.uk/timbermap

Recently there was an outcry in the Yorkshire Dales over the movement of 44-tonne timber lorries from the Cam Forest, in Wensleydale, over parts of the Pennine Way and the Dales Way.

The new map has been developed by the North Yorkshire Timber Freight Quality Partnership, which was established specifically to address such issues.

It shows where timber is likely to be harvested in the coming years and provides an indication of the average number of haulage vehicles that may need to leave different forests on harvesting days.

It also indicates the routes they should take to reach the main road network and categorises routes based on their suitability for HGV traffic.

The county’s executive member for transportation, Gareth Dadd, said: “The timber industry is important to the economy of North Yorkshire. However, we want to ensure that the impact on local communities and the road network is kept to a minimum. “

In conjunction with the route map the partnership has produced a guide ‘Working Together – Good practice guidance for timber extraction and haulage in North Yorkshire', which highlights the importance of good communication between all parties involved in or affected by timber extraction.