Woodland survey planned

Jan 23 2013 by Lynda Nicol, East Kilbride News

Forests and woodlands around Lanarkshire, Glasgow , Renfrewshire, the Lothians, Forth Valley and Fife are to be surveyed throughout the year to build up a picture of how many people use them and how often.

Carried out in woodlands managed by Forestry Commission Scotland, the year- long survey is part of an ongoing national monitoring programme which gathers information on visitors.

This year’s survey follows on from a similar one that was carried out across Scotland between 2004 to 2007. The data recorded then will act as a valuable benchmark for comparison. Face-to-face interviews will find out some basic background details of visitors, including their age, reason for visiting and how far and how they travelled.

Information on how much money they have spent in the local economy will also be collected. As well as interviews, data on visitor numbers will be collected from vehicle and people counters. More information on the All Forests Survey 2 is available at http://www.forestry.gov.uk/forestry/INFD-5WCMR4