A new single is aiming to raise awareness of the lack of biodiversity in UK conifer plantations. Where Now A Dark Wood Stands, by Scottish composer Alexander Chapman Campbell and folk singer Julie Fowlis, encourages the reimagining of timber forests so that nature can flourish in them. The country’s dense planting of conifers creates dark, eerie settings where wildlife struggles to thrive, but the lyrics of the song offer a message of hope for how plantations may be managed in future.
For Campbell, who wrote the music and lyrics, this is his first work directly exploring the relationship between humans and the natural world. “Many UK woodlands, especially in Scotland, are intensely managed timber plantations,” he said. These dark, artificial forests cannot support a broad range of life, with vast areas of land still being planted. Fowlis sings the song’s lyrics in Scottish Gaelic.
The single’s accompanying video was shot in a timber plantation near Chapman Campbell’s home in the north-east Scottish Highlands. It is the composer’s hope that the UK follows the lead of European countries that are demonstrating healthier ways of producing timber. The Forestry Commission now has a page celebrating the multiple benefits of continuous cover forestry, and a report by the Royal Society of Edinburgh published this year has called on the Scottish Government to discontinue subsidies for coniferous commercial tree planting.
There are signs that a sea change in our relationship with trees is underway, with many individuals and organisations working to create healthy woodlands. Chapman Campbell dreams of transforming plantations of sitka spruce trees from often barren monocultures to healthy, stable woods full of different species, ages and a thriving understorey. He believes there is enough will and knowledge to make this transformation happen
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