True horsepower to the rescue in main electrical energy venture

Actual horsepower is getting used to scale back the impression of tree removing wanted for upkeep of the electrical energy community in Scotland.

For the primary time because the community was modernised, Scottish & Southern Electrical energy Networks (SSEN) Transmission is extracting timber with heavy horses to keep away from pointless harm to the surroundings.

SSEN Transmission is working with Future Forestry, which operates throughout the nation and has discovered that “there’s nonetheless a spot for horse logging the place entry, area, environmental, or floor sensitivities don’t enable for modern-day equipment”.

The enterprise has recruited equine crew members Eli, Luke and Ben.

Future Forestry director of operations Angie Smith stated: “It has all the time been our mission to be forward-thinking with funding in new applied sciences to make work safer and extra environment friendly, however time-saving isn’t all the time the primary precedence on a whole lot of our worksites.

“We’ve to think about the surroundings we’re working in and the way we are able to depart a website having induced as little impression as potential on what stays. It’s all the time a stability between getting worth for our purchasers and mitigating our impression.

“Once I heard that the earlier proprietor John was retiring from working with the heavy horses, I knew we had a spot for them, even on a few of our business contracts. Our incredible equine supervisor, Annie Hutchison, spent a 12 months settling them in after their transfer from Rochdale and has additionally been serving to with employees coaching. We presently have 4 employees members who’ve undergone horse logging coaching programs as members of the British Horse Loggers.”

The horses have labored on tasks together with one for SSEN Transmission close to Brechin in Angus.

“Future Forestry’s work on the spur that connects the overhead line to the Brechin substation is the ultimate part of the resilience work on the 132kV overhead line circuits from Tealing to Arbroath,” an SSEN Transmission spokesperson stated, including that the location was classed as high-risk owing to the scale and place of conifers, which needed to be eliminated.

“Serving to to minimise disturbance, guide tree reducing together with horse logging was used to sensitively extract timber from amongst the broadleaf timber which can be being retained as an area that the encircling properties’ use.”

SSEN Transmission’s Martin Sangster stated the corporate was supportive when Future Forestry steered the thought.

“It additionally alleviated the issues of close by residents who have been apprehensive all timber have been being eliminated with heavy equipment,” he stated. “On studying of the horse logging approach, they grew to become supportive of the plans and appreciative of the steps being taken to scale back the impression of felling operations.”

British Horse Loggers Charitable Belief chair Steffi Schaffler stated: “Horse logging is a technique of extracting timber from forestry websites that’s delicate, sustainable and efficient. Horses don’t change machines however do jobs that wouldn’t be potential with different strategies.

“They make it potential to maintain the forestry system intact whereas extracting massive quantities of timber with out harm to the bottom or the standing crop.”

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H&H information editor

Eleanor is an skilled journalist who spent over eight years working for native and nationwide newspapers earlier than becoming a member of H&H as information editor in March 2016. Keen about equine welfare and exposing the reality, Eleanor has reported on all facets of the business, from Brexit to anti-bullying campaigns, and from dressage guidelines to mules. Her sport of selection is showjumping, through which she competes her personal horses, and she or he additionally enjoys reporting at native leaping reveals by to worldwide championships.