Leading for Nature

Tremendous response to this post with lots of suport for the independent views of farmers and concern that the NFU and Defra have formed too cosy an attachment with a single focus; culling badgers.

Tony Juniper is right to focus on the complete lack of insight, understanding or awareness of the importance of nature to a thriving economy and healthy society shown by politicians in the current cabinet.  

|| George Osborne's claim that laws to protect rare species are a 'ridiculous burden on business', Owen Paterson's championing the cause of Bayer and Syngenta in opposing the moratorium on the use of neonicotinoid pesticides and Michael Gove's attempts to downgrade education about our relationship with the natural environment are recent cases in point. With this in mind we can confidently guess that the government's on-going review of EU environmental laws is not intended to strengthen the protection of nature in these islands.||

The badger cull fiasco pales in comparison to these even more serious tendencies; symptoms of an environmental illness that leads to a pernicious degradation of the very living systems on which we are utterly dependent.

I have worked in nature conservation since 1979.  It is bitterly disappointing to read such a catalogue of failure and local extinctions.

The State of Nature Report pulls no punches- we are getting the place into a real mess.

We still take nature for granted; we can not afford to.  This is much more than the aesthetics of special places filled with the wonder of nature.  It is about a healthy planet.

If the UK can not be bothered to make an effort to conserve the very systems that keep us healthy and alive how can we expect less wealthy countries to do better?

Badger baiting - the dark side of human nature:-

"Delilah's brutal wounds are thought to be from badger baiting. In the illegal sport fires are started at all but one of the exit holes of the badger sett and dogs are sent down to chase them out"

Valuing Nature is the key to adressing sustainable development.  Until the environment is fully accepted by politicians, public servants and the business community as the KEY asset there will be no meaningful progress towards sustainability.

We have one planet yet conform to an economic model that has already reached levels of consumption that require 3, 4, 5 of more Earths to sustain.

Natural Capital is the tool that will address that disconnection.  Whilst ecological purists may cringe at the attachment of monetary values to the services that the natural world provides, it is that deeper understanding of the impact of nature on the bottom line that will persuade the business community to thing again.

To think again, to not take nature for granted and to integrate thinking naturally into routine business planning. 

Tony Juniper shares his thoughts on the value of nature for people and why we need to take more care of our natural heritage when making critical decisions that have long term implications for people and business.

Stephanie Hilborne, CEO of The Wildlife Trusts, talks about the great work that is being carried out by the partnership across the UK.  Living Landscapes programmes are putting environmental theory into local economic practice.

John Everitt, CEO of Nottinghamshire Widlife Trust, gives a powerful local prespective and shares his analysis of why nature counts in the local economy.

Wildife Trusts doing what they do best; practical, imaginative nature conservation for people, wildlife and local businesses.

Richard Lochhead MSP will receive a favourable response from Owen Paterson MP.  

The DEFRA Secretary of State made it clear, at a meeting that I attended on Friday April 27th, that he wanted Europe-wide scientific  field trials to provide more evidence that Neonicotinoids are the cause of the catastrophic decline in bees and other insect pollinators before action is taken.

Both ministers appear to view the 'precautionary principle' to be that it is most sensible for them to take every precaution not to upset the companies who make Neonicotinoids or the farming unions. 

It is great to see that Scilly now has a LNP led by a respected sustainability thinker Alan Knight.

Gloucestershire Local Nature Partnership meets on Thursday 20th with yours truly in the interim chair; quite a long interim as I have filled this role since the LNP inception in 2012.

LNPs have a lot to play for but with no mandate, no money and not enough respect from their sponsoring department Defra.  The Value of Nature is emerging as a clear theme and the subject of major thinking within the environmental NGOs and academic world.  Tony Juniper is leading the charge with his book 'What has Nature ever done for you?' 

It is a pity that whilst the Department of Business Innovation and Skills is supporting Local Enterprise Partnerships strongly, the health of LNPs is dependent on the partners that make them up.  Without Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust and Natural England their would be no LNP in this county.

My first encounters with thrilling wild creatures, like most people's, came at the sea shore.  It is wrong that government is dragging its heals to protect a network of the most important places for marine wildlife around our coastlines.

In her own words:-

"A cull would be bad for badgers, bad for farmers and bad for us, the taxpayer"

Gloria de Piero voted against the badger cull.

Amongst the many schemes being hatched by our Secretary of State for Environmental exploitation (privatised badger cull, kow-towing to the agrochemical industries over neonicotinoids, fudging Marine Conservation Zones in order not to upset the aggregates and yachting fraternities) is the latest wheeze of letting farmers dredge our rivers.  Clearly, in his view there is nothing wrong with this; he described the purpose of waterways as 'getting rid of water' at a recent agricultural conference that I attended.

It looks like a Force 10 storm that is about to hit the ecosystems on which we depend; anything that can be done cheaply will off loaded onto the market.

Nature has a value - this government does not see it.

It is clear the Natural England is not leading for nature; the NGOs are.

This new site is well worth adding to your regular reading list.  

|| An estimated 57% of plants and 34% of animals were likely to lose half or more of their habitat range. ||

The loss of animal species is not simply a sign that the world will be a less interesting place to live.  It raises the spectre that a world that looses such a diversity of animal and plant life will continue to be supportive of over seven billion people - and rising.

|| But the damage would be greatly reduced if emissions were scaled down in time, the study shows. Losses are reduced by 60% if global warming is cut to 2% above preindustrial levels, with emissions peaking in 2016 and then being reduced by 5% a year. If emissions peak in 2030, losses are reduced by 40%. ||

Will politicians listen to the warnings that are coming loud and very clear?  Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide has now exceeded the 'tipping point' of 400ppm.  Action is urgently needed and it may not be too late, but our comfort margin is being hammered hard.

||"It's important because the erosion of species richness among widespread and common species means that the functions ecosystems provide for humans across the whole global land surface will be very significantly reduced," said Warren. "These are important services such as air and water purification, soil stabilisation and nutrient recycling that we take for granted."||

Owen Paterson MP and Julie Girling MEP made it clear at the South West Agriculture Conference on Friday April 26th that they did not support immediate action against the use of neonicotinoids.  Both politicians wanted further field trials to generate evidence that the use of these chemicals was causal to the decline in bees and other insect pollinators in Europe and elsewhere.  Richard Lchead MEP has pressed a similar view from the Scottish Parlaiment.

I am glad that the European Commission has voted tor a Europe-wide ban.  This is leadership that is much needed.