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Billy provides solution for UPM Tilhill

Billy, a seven year-old, 17-hand Belgian draught horse was used by the UK's leading forestry and timber harvesting company, UPM Tilhill, to extract larch thinnings from a steep bank in Auchencairn Forest in Dumfries.
"As traditional, heavy machinery could not access parts of the site, horse logging was the obvious solution", explained John Jefford, Forest Manager, South West Scotland, UPM Tilhill. Of the 500 tonnes of timber awaiting extraction, 80 tonnes of logs were pulled by Billy using chains and the remainder was extracted using a forwarder, carrying the logs clear of the ground.

This site-sensitive job was worked by Jim Johnstone Forestry, based in Dumfries, who imports Belgian draught horses direct. Jim was selected for the job because he was able to use a mix of horse and forwarder extraction, to minimise ground damage during thinning operations.

Robert Herbert, District Manager, South West Scotland, UPM Tilhill said, "This shows that we care for the environment we work in. From small scale sensitive sites to commercial harvesting - our teams have the skills, experience and resources!"