Agricultural land in England is at risk of being forested over under the guise of combating climate change, the farming minister has warned.
Mark Spencer said the UK had to take care not to let too much farmland be turned over to tree planting and other carbon offsetting schemes for the sake of corporate “greenwashing”.
“We need to be wary of what we are using land for and we can’t allow that sort of greenwashing,” said Spencer. “If we’re not careful, Shell and British Airways will buy all the land in England and just plant trees on it to offset their carbon [emissions].”
Land agents have seen an increase in buyers looking for land for rewilding, tree planting and other environmental schemes, as companies race to meet net zero emissions targets and reduce their emissions by purchasing carbon “offsets”.
In order to meet its net zero targets, the government’s climate advisers said the UK would need to increase its forest cover from 13% to 17% by 2050.
