National Trust ready to 'step in' and save English woodlands

Biggest change in land ownership for more than 80 years described as 'watershed moment in the history of the nation'

The National Trust is poised to offer to take over or buy much of the state-owned English woodland which the government is planning to sell off.

The initiative, says the trust's director, Dame Fiona Reynolds, could protect in perpetuity not just large areas of "heritage" areas such as the Forest of Dean and the New Forest, but other woodland expected to be offered for sale to communities and commercial enterprises in the biggest change in land ownership for more than 80 years.

"This is a watershed moment in the history of the nation. These much-cherished places have been in public hands for centuries, enjoyed by everyone for generation after generation. The future of these important national assets will be decided in a matter of weeks," Reynolds told the Guardian.

"For 116 years, the National Trust has helped to save the places the people of this country most value when their existence, or access to them, has been threatened. If the government is determined to pursue the course of action it has outlined and the public wish us to, we are ready to play our part in giving them a secure future. We are ready to step in."

The government has met fierce resistance to its plans to dispose of 258,000 hectares. It plans to hand roughly 25% of the most treasured woodland over to new or existing trusts, offer communities and charities the right to buy a further 25%, with the rest being put on the open market over a period of years. However, strong objections have been raised over whether access and ecological quality will be guaranteed. By today, 288,000 people had signed a petition to halt the disposal.

Reynolds said that the trust, which has 3 million members, was looking at all the options and would consult conservation groups, local organisations, other forest users and individuals to gauge how important the English woods are for people and to see h! ow their future can be preserved for future generations. It expects to make proposals to its board of trustees within three months, when the government's consultation exercise ends.

"Our board will decide how to respond," she said. "We stand ready to help in a variety of ways. It could be ownership or to help others play a role."

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: "We're interested to hear ideas from all interested parties as part of this consultation process and welcome all contributions."


guardian.co.uk Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

UK greenhouse gas emissions fall 8.7%

Image
Total UK emissions plummet as recession lowers electricity and fuel use A dramatic fall in greenhouse gas emissions following the recession has brought the UK's climate change targets for the next five years within easy reach, taking the pressure off government and business to comply. Government estimates released on Tuesday showed greenhouse gas emissions fell by 8.7% from 2008 to 2009, the biggest drop since records began in 1990. Carbon dioxide levels plunged 9.8%, a fall only matched in 1980, in records extending to 1970. The unexpectedly deep slump in emissions mirrors the fall in industrial output in the recession, with high-emitting sectors including construction and transport hit particularly hard. But it also means that government-set climate change targets of cutting emissions by 35% by 2020, compared with 1990 levels, now look much easier to meet. The UK has already met the targets for 2016, provided emissions stay at 2009 levels. This raises the prospect that business...
Keep reading

Top flyer boo-boo : Shut off noisy engines

LONDON: It's too noisy, could you please turn off the engines ? Could you please open the window? These are some of the "foolish" and "bizarre requests" flyers often make to flight attendants, according to a new survey. The survey of some 3,000 Virgin Atlantic cabin crew members found that some passengers fail to understand why they are prevented from opening the window, others think "turning down" the engines could reduce the noise. "Please, can you open the window?" was among the most common unusual queries made by uncomfortable passengers who seem to be unaware of the benefits of a pressurised cabin at 35,000ft. Other unique questions included "could you turn the engines down because they are too noisy?" and "please can the captain stop the turbulence?", the Telegraph reported. The survey also laid bare the level of comfort and service some customers expect, with several asking flight attendants "can you sho...
Keep reading

Dogs can be trained to sniff out bowel cancer, Japanese researchers say

Image
Experiments show that labrador retriever's sense of smell can identify minute traces of chemicals circulating in human body Dogs can be trained to sniff out bowel cancer, even when the disease is in its early stages, researchers in Japan claim. In a series of experiments that involved sniffing the breath or stool samples of patients, a specially-trained labrador retriever proved nearly as good at identifying those with cancer as a conventional colonoscopy examination. The team, led by Hideto Sonoda at Fukuoka dental college hospital, said some dogs have such a keen sense of smell that they can detect minute traces of chemicals that appear to circulate in the bodies of people who have cancer. The finding builds on previous experiments in which researchers used dogs to sniff out cancers in the skin, lungs, bladder and ovaries. Writing in the journal Gut , the researchers describe how the eight-year-old dog was trained to distinguish between the smell of a patient with colorectal canc...
Keep reading