British use of wood and ecology

The British tend to use timber a lot.  Wood is used extensively and for varied purposes.  Besides the usual furniture, both household and garden, wood is used for making shelves and racks.  The roof structures of the houses are made of wood.  So is the flooring in most houses.  Fences are all of wood. Even telephone poles are of wood.  All the pews and lecterns in the Churches are made of wood.

My first reaction when I noticed the extensive outdoor use of wood: "Thank God there are no white ants here!" The liberal use of wood only goes on to show the abundance of trees and growth in the country.  Though fiber and other materials are gaining ground, wood is still much in demand. To keep up with this great demand of wood there has to be a proportionate and planned growth of trees, for  wood certainly does not become available overnight.  It takes years for a tree to grow!

It is officially stated that (as of February 2018)

• The area of woodland in the UK is 3.17 million hectares. This represents 13% of the total land area in the UK, 10% in England, 15% in Wales, 18% in Scotland and 8% in Northern Ireland. 
• The total certified woodland area in the UK at 31 March 2017 is 1.39 million hectares, including all Forestry Commission/Natural Resources Wales/Forest Service woodland. Overall, 44% of the UK woodland area is certified. 
• Seven thousand hectares of newly created woodland were reported in the UK in 2016-17, mostly with coniferous species. (Source: Forestry Commission)

Source: BBC

On the whole there is a greater appreciation and awareness of ecological concerns among the people than back in India - though not everyone shares the responsibility of doing something about it.  However, I think the Indians share a much closer bond with nature than the Europeans.