Around 450 jobs are to be lost at the Forestry Commission in England and Scotland – a move announced on the same day the United Nations launched its Year of the Forest programme.
Around 300 positions will be cut in England and between 100 and 150 will go at the organisation's corporate offices in Edinburgh over the next four years.
The losses come as a result of cuts to the commission's budget of 26% between now and 2015 and staff were told in a series of meetings, said a Forestry Commission spokesman.
According to the spokesman, the organisation expected the job losses to include a mixture of voluntary redundancies and retirements but did not rule out compulsory redundancies.
The UK Government is currently seeking the mass sell-off of the nation's forests.
Today, prime minister David Cameron defended his government's plans to sell off some forests in England by explaining it would provide better safeguards.
He was answering a question from Labour MP Barry Sheerman at Prime Minister's Questions who claimed the government was taking forests from "the ordinary people".
The PM said the previous government sold off woodlands with no guarantees about access and habitats, but he was listening to arguments being put forward.
The developments came as the UN launched its “year-long celebration of the vital role of world’s forests” in New York to raise awareness of their value.
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