The year of the environmental u-turn?

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The coalition's commitment to nuclear power, the waste review, the Green Investment Bank, Green Deal and the u-turn on the sale of the nation's forests have all evoked strong reactions from our membership over the course of the last parliamentary year.

The most covered news story of the year in the environment sector, and the most emotive, was the proposed sale of the nation's state-owned forests.

Early February saw an Opposition Day debate on the public forest estate and, over the following weeks, concern about the proposals gathered pace. Ahead of the debate, the Woodland Trust urged the government to treat ancient woodland as a 'special case'.

A little over two weeks later, environment secretary Caroline Spelman announced that the proposed sale of the 258,000 hectares of public forest estate had been abandoned.

Delivering a statement to the House of Commons, Spelman said: "I am sorry, we got this one wrong, but we have listened to people's concerns.

"I hope that the measures I have announced today, signalling a fresh approach, demonstrate my intention to do the right thing for our forests and woodlands."

Unsurprisingly the Trust, Britain's leading woodland conservation charity, welcomed the government's change of direction, but vowed that the campaign to protect the nation's ancient forests would go on.

Wary about the threat the proposals posed to British businesses, Timber Packaging & Pallet Confederation (TIMCON) secretariat, Stuart Hex welcomed the government's change of heart and commended them for "listening and responding" to concerns from the industry.

The aggregates sector suffered a setback in March, with the government ceasing the Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund (ALSF), which supports projects that aim to reduce the impact of the extraction of aggregates on local communities and the natural environment.

Speaking at a reception for the Mineral Products Association, minister for the natural environment, Richard Benyon noted the importance of the scheme to the natural environment, but stressed that in times of economic hardship, "difficult decisions must be made".

In May, the government announced the creation of the world's first national bank dedicated to the green economy. The Green Investment Bank was praised by Nicky Morgan MP, writing on behalf of the Westminster Sustainable Business Forum.

Morgan said: "This announcement signals the right trajectory for a financial institution unlike any other. The success of the UK's green economy will require the Green Investment Bank to be a long-standing financial entity, established and secure in the face of inevitable challenges to come."

Another key parliamentary development for ePolitix.com members was the release of the natural environment white paper (NEWP) in June.

With its proposals for Nature Improvement Areas, the establishment of Local Nature Partnerships and the support for local community involvement in landscape planning, the NEWP was described by the Campaign to Protect Rural England as "a significant step forward for our natural heritage".

Ben Stafford, head of campaigns at the CPRE, told ePolitix.com:

"The big question now is whether the whole of government can be relied upon to support the good work of Defra and the aims of this white paper.

"While this is in many ways an inspiring document, sadly every silver lining has a cloud. In this case that cloud is the failure to be more confident about the critical environmental role of planning."

There was welcome news in June for the glass and glazing industry as the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) acknowledged that windows will be included in Green Deal claims.

Nigel Rees, chief executive of the Glass and Glazing Federation, responded to the announcement with cautious optimism, saying there would be plenty of "work ahead" for the industry to present the facts on energy-efficient glass and glazing.

As the parliamentary year drew to a close, the publication of the electricity market reform white paper in July received a mixed response from our membership, with the Institution of Engineering and Technology raising concerns about the "excessive complexity" of the market and the Nuclear Industry Association praising the government's commitment to new nuclear build.

And we heard from Mark Spencer MP on the work of the Associate Parliamentary Sustainable Resource Group and their reactions to the waste review.