Environmental groups, local businesses, developers and farmers are among those who will come together and put forward ideas for the strategy during a meeting on 22 July.
It is hoped that the strategy, which is supported by funding from the Climate Emergency Fund, will be published at the beginning of next year and will include a review of the list of protected trees.
Environment Minister John Young is also planning to lodge an amendment to the Planning and Building Law, before the States Assembly summer recess, calling for better protection of trees in the planning process.
Under the Planning and Building (Jersey) Law 2002, Islanders cannot cut down or alter any listed tree without first obtaining planning permission.
However, Deputy Young revealed that all applications to carry out work on protected trees in recent years had been passed – something he called ‘unacceptable’.
Earlier this year Deputy Young admitted that considerable drafting delays due to Covid-19 and Brexit had halted the progress of strengthening the legal protection for trees, which would give more of them listed status.
And St Lawrence Deputy Kirsten Morel had aimed to bring in temporary ‘stop-gap’ legislation until permanent law changes were approved.
Deputy Morel said he hit a ‘dead end’ after he found that the Planning Law did not allow the Environment Minister to place a protection order on a range of trees.
Commenting on the plans for a new strategy and stronger laws to protect trees, Deputy Young said: ‘We need to ensure that the trees growing right now will continue to thrive well into the future, for generations to come. I’d like to thank the stakeholder representatives who will support the creation of our new tree strategy and shape the way that we protect, maintain and enhance the Island’s tree stock.
‘This is an ambitious programme of work but, following the declaration of a climate emergency in Jersey, it is vital we move quickly with this. The tree strategy, coupled with much-needed changes to the law, will update and improve the government’s approach to tree protection and management.’
