Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Seeing the forest for the trees – join our free Press and Journal Business Breakfast

Investors and land specialists are looking at how moorlands and arable land can be used to plant sustainable forests.
Investors and land specialists are looking at how moorlands and arable land can be used to plant sustainable forests.

The Scottish landscape is being seen with new eyes.

Investors and land specialists are looking at how moorlands and arable land can be used to plant sustainable forests – creating a carbon sink, as well as a source of timber and space for tourism and recreation.

Land has traditionally been cheaper in Scotland than in its neighbouring countries but this is set to change.

Carbon, sequestered to become the basis of an offset that can be used and traded to reach net-zero on a carbon balance sheet, is becoming a major factor underpinning land prices.

Net-zero offsets

Further to this, the Scottish Government has set out ambitious plans to establish around 7,400-12,350 acres per year of new native woodland in order to meet net-zero targets. Private investment will be key to this.

These issues and more will be the subject of The Press and Journal’s next Business Breakfast on September 24. An expert panel will be led by Don Macleod, partner at land and property at law firm Turcan Connell.

Don Macleod, partner for land and property, Turcan Connell.

Mr Macleod acts for a number of significant landed estates throughout Scotland and a number of forestry investors, both private wealth and institutional.

Carbon contracts

He is also heavily involved in advising on the legal aspects of carbon contracts. This gives him a unique insight into the trends facing investors and landowners alike.

“Carbon is underpinning rural land values in many cases and the price of land on which trees may be planted has increased significantly”, Mr Macleod said.

He added: “The tree planting market and commercial forestry market is heavily influenced by investment funds with significant resources.”

Change in land use can be an emotive issue as competition heats the market – Mr Macleod pointed out that some traditional farms are being put to use for tree planting.

However, the market for carbon is in flux as global investors grapple with environmental, social, and governance (ESG) requirements, and the value and quality of carbon offsets changes.

Mr Macleod said: “The price of UK carbon has increased significantly over the past couple of years, but many say it could increase dramatically over the short to medium term.

“Nevertheless, there are great opportunities for owners of land to look at this as a means of generating income.”

Mr Macleod will be joined on the panel by David Robertson, investment and business development director for Scottish Woodlands.

David Robertson, director of investment and business development, Scottish Woodlands.

Scottish Woodlands is a leading forestry management company with a long tradition of serving forest owners and investors in Scotland and the rest of the UK.

Originally established as a woodland owner’s co-operative, its history can be traced back over 75 years.

Mr Robertson works daily with professional advisors, agents and a variety of other partners to find, place and secure a range of forestry and land subjects on behalf of private, corporate and institutional clients.

Together, the panelists have spoken at global conferences highlighting the drivers of forestry investment and the performance of the forestry sector as an asset class.

The Press and Journal Business Breakfast, brought to you in association with Turcan Connell, is a free virtual event.

An event website has been launched and viewers are urged to register to attend at www.pandjbreakfast.co.uk 

Press and Journal Business Breakfast in association with Turcan Connell

TIME 8.00am – 9.00am
DATE September 24, 2021