30 November 2018
Delegates from the Guyana Forestry Commission arrived at Shoreham Port recently to promote the sustainable use of Greenheart timber, primarily for engineering schemes in the maritime environment.
Greenheart is the best timber for use in coast protection and port works as it is four times stronger than English Oak and virtually immune to rot. However, using Greenheart from sustainably managed forests is also great from an environmental perspective as it gives a high value to the forests and creates an incentive to keep them in good condition.
Shoreham Port’s Director of Engineering, Tony Parker, has a long association with the battle to conserve tropical rainforests, particularly with Greenheart forests in Guyana. Tony hosted the visit and took the group on a tour to view the various uses of Greenheart around the Port, including fenders on the ship berths, groynes on the beach and the large dock gates on Shoreham’s Dry Dock. The visiting group consisted of seven delegates from Guyana, including the Chair of the Guyanese Forestry Commission, Ms Jocelyn Dow, and three directors from the Scottish timber company hosting them on their visit, Gilmour & Aitken.
Nicola Aitken of Gilmour & Aitken on behalf of the delegation said “The Port visit was a really good start to the series of meetings in the UK. It gave the Guyanese a deep insight into the purchasing and engineering decision-making processes which the UK adopt for tropical timbers. With one of the lowest deforestation rates in the world at 0.048%, this visit has allowed Guyana to directly communicate to important customers how their sustainable forest practices meet the UK requirements.
The Guyanese delegates thanked Shoreham Port staff for their warm welcome, and Tony Parker commented “I have always had a very strong personal interest in the conservation of tropical rainforests and, as a Trust Port, Shoreham Port is very keen to do all it can to promote the sustainable use of forest products. It was an absolute pleasure to meet with the delegation from Guyana and I wish them the very best in their pursuit of a secure, sustainable future for their forests.”
Category: Sustainability
