ABSTRACT
Growing interest in defining and measuring sustainability in British forestry coincides with a transition period in which a new multipurpose role is slowly being defined in both public and private sectors. Multipurpose forestry involves forestry for timber, recreational use and environmental services such as carbon fixing. This chapter evaluates forestry policy in the context of recent approaches to measuring sustainable development. Considering even the narrowest definition of harvest rates relative to growth, it is far from clear whether the sector is or ever has been on a sustainable path. A broader focus on all aspects of forestry will help to redress this situation and should form the basis of future planning strategies.
