A LEADING student has said he is “stunned” after claiming a prestigious silvicultural prize. 

Bangor University’s Gregory Adamson received this year’s Tilhill Phil Johnson Memorial Award for Best Silviculture Student 2022–23 on the silviculture module. 

His work – exploring the validity of utilising monocyclic silvicultural systems in the context of increased flood risk – was called “exceptional” by his lecturer, while he was given a specially-carved wooden trophy along with £250 prize money for his efforts. 

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Greg, who is studying on the environmental forestry degree course, said: “I’m stunned and honoured. The course is full of sharp and forward-thinking students; for my work to be selected from this bunch is really something. For Tilhill to run this award in memory of former employee Phil Johnson is very touching and I’m very grateful to have won.”

Monocyclic systems involve harvesting all trees during a single operation, relying on seedling regeneration to develop into the next even-aged crop over a rotation.

The Phil Johnson Memorial Award is given in recognition of Phil Johnson, a former senior manager at Tilhill for many years for England and Wales, who passed away following cancer diagnosis ten years ago.

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Mark Rayment, senior lecturer in Forestry at Bangor University, said: “Phil would have enjoyed meeting him and the wide-ranging and well-informed discussions that would have followed.”