An Analysis of the Cost of Grey Squirrel Damage to Woodland
2021
The purpose of this report has been to build on and update previous research so as to ‘update this work so that members of the UK Squirrel Accord can point to recent, well supported and transparent evidence of the cost of damage’ by grey squirrels to woodland in England and Wales.
The objectives of the report are as follows, the full brief is replicated in Appendix A.
Objectives
• Develop a transparent and replicable methodology to estimate with reasonable accuracy the cost of grey squirrel damage in woodlands in England and Wales.
• Ground-truth the methodology by reference to selected landowner case studies.
• Deliver a report with supporting evidence which can be published
• Promote the findings of the report widely within the UK Squirrel Accord signatories, their networks/members and in national media.
The report has been commissioned by the Royal Forestry Society (RFS) and sponsored and overseen by a Steering Group of representatives of the RFS, the Forestry Commission, the National Forest Company, Natural Resources Wales, and The Woodland Trust.
