A new report on England’s wildlife network seems to have been written in isolation from many of the challenges we currently face as a nation, the NFU said today.
The NFU has consistently argued that the challenge ahead is to ‘produce more, impact less’ so we were disappointed that this has not been taken into consideration in the Making Space for Nature review, which has been published by Defra.
The report calls for an ambitious and urgent step-change in nature conservation to halt the “inexorable decline” in many species. It also recommends:
- Better protection and management of designated wildlife sites
- The establishment of new Ecological Restoration Zones
- Better protection of non-designated wildlife sites.
Professor Sir John Lawton’s review has been concerned with how well the English network of protected wildlife and ecological sites will be able to cope with future pressures, such as climate change – but the NFU said this has not sufficiently taken into account the other challenges that lie ahead.
NFU countryside adviser Andrea Graham said: “The clear message in the recent Defra Structural Reform Plan is that farming and sustainable food production can be achieved alongside protecting and enhancing the environment. Yet this report appears to have been written as if the two are alternatives making the country’s wildlife as a stand-alone entity, which is clearly not the case.
“I would have liked to have seen the report present constructive recommendations about how our finite land resources can be managed for the benefit of both farming and the environment – rather than treat wildlife as a separate issue.
“The report could have clarified more the crucial role farmers’ play in the future enhancement of wildlife. However, fails to acknowledge the significant contributions that have already been made to the environment and our countryside by farmers in recent years.
“The review’s recommendations seem to rely heavily on costly and rigid policy measures such as greater protection and designation of wildlife sites and, of particular concern to us, lacks any real sense of scale of what may be needed to meet its own objectives.
“The NFU believes a more responsive and flexible approach is needed. Investment in research which allows us to produce more but impact less will be key to underpinning a future functional wildlife network.”
Get more environmental news from the NFU here.
No comments have been made.