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Area of land Available for Afforestation. Journal Board 

 of Agric., April 1909. London, p. 44. 



" It appears that the total area (excluding water) of Great 

 Britain according to the latest figures of the Ordnance Survey 

 (revised August 3ist 1908) is 56 199 980 acres. Of this, the acreage 

 under crops and grass i. e., what is usually termed the cultivated 

 area amounts to 32211386 acres. A further area of 2768243 

 acres (as returned in 1905) is woodland, and of the remainder 

 12801974 acres are returned as "mountain and heath land used 

 for grazing." 



It will thus be seen that 8418377 acres remain unaccounted 

 for in the Agricultural Returns. A very large proportion of this 

 unreturned land is appropriated for urban requirements, while rail- 

 ways, roads, mines, quarries, and other industrial operations absorb 

 in the aggregate a considerable portion of the surface of the country. 

 The extent of land within the boundaries of boroughs and urban 

 authorities in England and Wales, and of Royal, municipal, and 

 police burghs in Scotland, amounts approximately to 4 ooo ooo acres. 

 Some of this, though probably a small proportion, is included in 

 the Agricultural Returns. 



According to a computation made by the Board of Agriculture 

 about 3 537 172 acres of the total surface of Great Britain lie above 

 the i 500 feet level. Although such part of this elevated land as 

 is used for grazing should properly be returned, it may be assumed 

 that a large part would not be so used. Probably a considerable 

 proportion of the area occupied by deer forests would come within 

 this computed area. 



It may be added that, according to a return of 1874 the esti- 

 mated extent of land subject to common rights in England and 

 Wales was at that time 2 632 772 acres. 



In attempting to estimate the extent of so-called " waste land " 

 which might be available for planting, we may deduct in the first 

 instance the land already under woodland and also that which is 

 under cultivation (i. e. returned as under crops and grass). This 

 leaves in round figures 21 ooo ooo acres. From this we may deduct 

 the land above i 500 feet and subject to common rights, say, to- 

 gether, 6 ooo ooo acres. The area of urban districts may also be 

 deducted in a rough calculation of this kind, as, although it com- 

 prises a certain amount of land included under other headings. 



