There’s no protection for the trees on Maidenhead Golf Course

We estimate there are thousands of trees on the council owned land, currently leased by Maidenhead Golf Club, providing important wildlife habitats and locking up around 16,000 tonnes of carbon. The trees range from ancient oaks and ash trees, to mature fir, willow, maple and many smaller oak trees.

Aerial images show round half the 90-acre area occupied by the golf course is wooded, with a series of copses, including the ancient woodland of Rushington Copse.

This greenspace is threatened by development

The threat of development hangs over this green belt land.  The Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead has allocated this land for the development of over 2,000 new dwellings in its Borough Local Plan. 

Recording the trees will help to protect them

We feel strongly that the trees on the golf course must be protected, and more trees should be planted there too.  Currently very few trees on the golf course are protected.  But a record of the trees, detailing their type, approximate age and condition will be important for protecting as many trees as possible. 

Our council has no current plans for TPO’s for the golf course

We have asked our council’s Tree Team to undertake a survey and place Tree Protection Orders (TPO’s) where appropriate.  Unfortunately, according to Helen Leonard, the Arboricultural Co-ordinator of the Tree Team, they “have no plans at the moment to include trees at the golf course in a TPO.  This is because the Council owns the freehold of the site so has control as to what happens here in future.  The trees are a material consideration in the planning process for any redevelopment of the site.  This will be an open and transparent process whereby residents will be able to comment on the proposals and those views will be taken into account.  Should a point come whereby the site changes hands, then the Council can review the need for a TPO.”

Helen has also explained that: “In terms of redevelopment there will be a requirement that a tree survey is undertaken and submitted with any planning application.  This will provide a detailed appraisal of the quality and value of the trees on the site.  This will help inform what trees should be retained and protected and can be used as a basis for a TPO.”

Trees and the Climate Emergency

Not only do mature trees provide vital habitats for wildlife, they also absorb carbon and particulate matter, helping to improve air quality.

A single 400 year old ancient oak produces 234,000 litres of oxygen a year, and may support more than 2,000 species of bird, insect, fungus and lichen.

Our council has declared a Climate Emergency and its Climate & Environment Strategy highlights the role of trees, and tree planting, to protect biodiversity and meet carbon net zero by 2050.

Top 5 reasons why trees are so important

1. Trees support biodiversity – trees provide vital habitats for a wide range of wildlife, including bats, birds and insects.  Conserving and sustainably managing biodiversity is critical to addressing climate change.
2. Trees absorb carbon & help fight Climate Change – trees capture and store carbon through photosynthesis. The entire woodland ecosystem plays a huge role in locking up carbon, including the living wood, roots, leaves, deadwood, surrounding soils, and vegetation. According to The Woodland Trust, a young wood with mixed native species can lock up 400+ tonnes of carbon per hectare.  There are roughly 40 hectares of woods on Maidenhead Golf Course, so that’s at least 16,000 tonnes of carbon locked up there.
3. Trees clean our air – as well as absorbing carbon dioxide, trees remove particulate matter from our air.  Fine particulate matter can easily penetrate into the human respiratory system, causing lung and heart diseases. 
4. Trees provide shade – trees also offer shade, important for cooling our air and conserving water supplies.
5. The Wood Wide Web – trees are amazing.  They connect to each other via underground fungal networks.  They share water and nutrients through the networks, and also use them to communicate. 

For more information about trees and how they can help us fight climate change, visit http://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk