Woodland replanting grant welcomed

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=90 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" background="04b785a3.jpg"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><B>Councillor Keith Martin </B></FONT><B>     |     </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Councillor Keith Martin "><U><B>home</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="news21.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="News"><U><I><B><U>Back to news page</U></B></I></U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <IMG SRC="08289bd0.jpg" border=0 width="137" height="189" ALT="Large photo Councillor Keith Martin" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </td> <td valign="top" height=390 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <I>Woodland replanting grant welcomed</I></div> <div> Councillor Keith Martin, Independent member of Westport Town Council, has warmly welcomed the announcement of the approval of the town's application for grant aid under the Neighbour Wood Scheme. The grant has been approved by the Dept of Agriculture and the Forestry Service. The scheme supports the establishment or development, by local authorities, of woodlands in or near centres of population for the purpose of public enjoyment and recreation. </div> <div> The grant will go towards the replanting of the Northwoods area of the woodland between Pinewoods and the New Road. The grant application was a joint application between Westport Town Council and the committee set up by local residents who estates neighbour the woodland of which Keith Martin is a member. </div> <div> Cllr Martin says "I welcome this news as will all those who have been involved in getting the area replanted. I was on the original committee which brought this proposal to the council and I am delighted to see it approved. A major condition of the grant is the involvement of the neighbouring estates in the replanting of the woodland and we are all eager to see new trees going in as soon as it is suitable for planting."<FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" > </FONT></div> <div> Cllr Martin has been a campaigning for the replanting of the area for several years beginning with a petition he took up in 1999 protesting about the re-development of the Northwoods area. The re-planting of the Northwoods has been an on-going issue ever since. Cllr Martin concludes "I am delighted with the announcement of the grant approval, it means a lot to me personally and to my neighbours on the Newport Road. We have a wonderful opportunity now to plan and plant a woodland area that will serve as a recreational and community asset for the entire town for many years to come."</div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>