September - Protect our Environmental Laws!
Join the Red Tape Challenge Debate!
The Environmental Sector is now live at the link to the right where you can have your say between 1st and 21st September.
Previous Articles
Here at WildAid we are closely watching the on-going debate about what policies are to be altered or completely scrapped through the government’s Red Tape Challenge. The campaign includes legislation from many sectors, however, our concern is with the environment sector which has opened for debate online! There are many pieces of legislation that effect the environment and it is important to see the whole picture even though the most directly relevant policy area for wildlife is under the heading biodiversity, wildlife management, landscape, countryside and recreation.
These regulations aim to conserve vulnerable or rare species, habitats and wildlife sites. They also control access to footpaths and national parks. They include provisions on fishing activities; invasive non-native species; protection of native species; traps; trade in endangered species; zoo licensing; dangerous wild animals; game; selling dead wild birds; registering and ringing captive birds; wildfowling restrictions; national park authorities; common land; rights of way; areas of outstanding beauty; and pest control. (Red Tape Challenge, 2011)
Some Background…
It is important to have an historical background to environmental policy in order to understand why the legislation that is threatened by our current government underpins all of the land management processes that effect British wildlife. The following section will provide a brief summary of the three Acts of Parliament that the majority of environmental policy is based around. However, The Red Tape Challenge (above) and Legislation links at the end detail the 163 regulations that relate to biodiversity, wildlife management, landscape, countryside and recreation that are under threat, illustrating just how important it is for your voice to be heard!
The approach to nature conservation in Britain has been to identify and protect prime areas of scientific interest as representative of the remaining natural and semi-natural, biological, geological and physiographical areas in the country. Historically, a good starting point is just after the Second World War when various committees were set up to examine how best to manage the countryside. Between 1945 and 1951 a battery of legislation appeared covering town and country planning, agriculture, conservation and recreation. The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 was passed with two statutory purposes:
1. To conserve and enhance their natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage.
2. To promote opportunities for the public understanding and enjoyment of these special qualities.
Whilst the Act was based in the approach of habitat conservation through site designation and failed to integrate nature conservation within the broader framework of emerging rural policy, it was a legislative cornerstone. The successful implementation of any policy needs to integrate all land use stakeholders. However, unfortunately, conflict of interest is the main issue for sustainable land use and this was even more so around the time of these post war rural policy innovations. Between the 1950s and 1980s a sectorial approach to rural land use policy prevailed and the major land uses of agriculture, forestry, development and nature conservation followed independent paths.
Post war food shortages prompted the revolution of intensified farming whereby new technology and the later advent of the Common Agricultural Policy focused on increased output and productivity. Incentives in the form of grants and subsidies to promote efficiency caused the loss of many areas of high nature conservation value such as hedge, woodland, moorland and down. This loss was exacerbated by the limited remit of the Nature Conservancy Council in relation to other land use policies. The relationship between conservation and agriculture, which had previously been balanced through traditional land use practices, began to erode as government policy encouraged increased output through the use of incentives which at that time took no account of nature conservation objectives. Town and Country Planning pulled land use management in yet another direction further compromising conservation objectives.
Significant habitat loss was taking place and this was beginning to be recognised by the 1970s forcing a reappraisal of policies for nature conservation. A development control system was proposed that would cover all forestry and agricultural activities in designated areas as well as in the wider countryside. These radical proposals were not met favourably by the land-owning communities who had a deep-rooted belief in their role as stewards and their entitlement to manage land without interference. Under pressure for reform The Wildlife and Countryside Act was passed in 1981 to legislatively address the issues of species protection and habitat loss.
This Bill gives more protection for Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) and through a combination of regulatory and financial tools provides a stronger position to persuade landowners not to proceed with land use change which would damage nature conservation interests. The 1981 Act also strengthens species protection, bringing the legislation for bird protection into line with the recent EEC Directives. The Act whilst providing a foundation for improved conservation legislation was based in the fragmented philosophy of the 1949 National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act and came under criticism for not going far enough to prove enforceable protection for designated habitats and species.
In response to a public consultation the Countryside and Rights of Way Act (CROW) received Royal Assent in 2000. The four main areas covered in this are
• Access to Open Country
• Public Rights of Way
• Nature Conservation
• Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
The purpose of the CROW Act is to create a new statutory right of access on foot to certain types of open land, to modernise the public rights of way system, to strengthen nature conservation legislation, and to facilitate better management of AONBs. There are provisions for local authorities to establish byelaws and give greater powers of enforcement to a variety of relevant bodies. It seeks to balance the new rights with responsibilities on all parties, and codes of practice have been produced to explain these to landowners and users.
The importance of biodiversity conservation is given a statutory basis in the CROW Act, requiring government departments to have regard for biodiversity in carrying out its functions, and to take positive steps to further the conservation of listed species and habitats. The protection of SSSIs, already established in The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, is strengthened giving greater power to Natural England to enter into management agreements, to refuse consent for damaging operations, and to take action where damage is being caused through neglect or inappropriate management.
Under the CROW Act Local Authorities have a statutory duty to further the conservation and enhancement of SSSIs both in carrying out their operations, and in exercising their decision making functions. The Act strengthens legal protection for threatened species and brings up to date the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. This assists in bringing offenders to justice, and provides for stronger penalties. The procedure and purpose of designating AONBs is also clarified in this legislation, which was originally set out in the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949. The consolidation of these provisions improves its effectiveness and its impact.
This article is an absolute skim of the surface of the policy framework that has progressed in a very specific time scale, however, it is clear from this brief introduction that each piece of the jigsaw of the legislation that has been fought for long and hard over the years is important to the development of policy and implementation of environmental law for future generations. If we don’t speak up now and these documents disappear how are we to learn, shape and improve environmental policy to come?
Please get involved in the Red Tape Challenge and voice your opinion. At WildAid we are collecting handprints at our events which we are turning into bunting to produce a show of hands for our Environmental Laws so if you come across us be sure to leave you imprint for the government to see!
I hope this short article has been helpful. The area of Rural Policy is very complex and conflict of interest continues to create a challenge for policy makers as we strive for legislation that considers the economic, environmental and social aspects of sustainable land use. If you are interested there is loads of information and further reading available and I have listed a few of my favourites below which form the reference of the information above.
Best wishes,
Dawn and the WildAid Team.
Further Reading:
Winter. M. 2000. Rural Politics. Policies for Agriculture, Forestry & the Environment. Routledge
Shoard. M. 1980. The Theft of the Countryside. Temple Smith
Dickens.P. 2004. Society and Nature. Polity
Harvey. G. 1998. The Killing of the Countryside. Vintage
Carson. R. 1962. Silent Spring. Houghton Mifflin
Pepper. D.. 1996. Modern Environmentalism. Routledge.
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/all?theme=biodiversity&page=3
http://www.redtapechallenge.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/home/index/
http://www.naturenet.net/index.php
