gement, and... beavers
proposed ELMS approach may provide the
incentive to put a pond in that corner.
Talking of water, is the return of beavers an
example of where there is potentially more
in common between environmentalists and
land managers over conservation?
I am delighted that beavers are slowly
returning to our landscape after an
absence of centuries. I do think that we
have a duty to put back the pieces of the
jigsaw that we have removed.
Perhaps in a less antagonistic way, given
the tension caused by illegal releases of
beavers and other species?
When the government seems not to move,
some conservationists inevitably decide
to take matters into their own hands.
However eager the public seems to be,
it is important that efforts to restore
missing species have the buy-in of local
communities. That is critical to the
success of any project. I don’t know the
circumstances around how beavers made
it into the River Otter or the River Tay, but
I am delighted that it happened.
What if landowners need to manage them?
You generally won’t find a beaver more
than ten metres from water. In lots of
countries you are not allowed to farm
right up to the water’s edge because we
know it causes soil erosion, run-off of
nitrates and other chemicals. So frankly
I am a believer in ‘backing-off’ from the
water a little bit; in which case, beavers
are much less of a problem.
But of course, there are places where
beavers will be an issue and we need to
give landowners the right to manage
them. If you are farming a high-quality
arable holding and beavers interfere with
your drainage system, then you have
The other source
of optimism
is in respect
of the great
blank canvases
that our less-
productive
agricultural land
represents...
to be able to move them or even to kill
them. That stands to reason. In the same
way, while the wild boar re-establishes
itself in our woodlands, we have got to
make sure we hunt them enough. It’s just
a simple part of playing our role in the
environment and being sensitive to the
needs of landowners who have a genuine
problem. But there is a tendency among
the British landowning class to reject
outright the notion that they should share
the landscape with other species.
I think there is a word for this: co-
existence. We surely must be able to
co-exist with wildlife in a way that other
countries do.
Are we in danger of doom fatigue over
biodiversity losses? Is there is more room for
optimism to reframe the narrative?
I think there are two potential sources
of good news. The first is modern
technology enabling us to farm more
productively, with lower inputs to grow
food with less impact on the environment.
I am a big believer that the government
should be spending more on research
and development to help advance the
technology, alongside there being more
we can learn from organic practices. I
think there is a huge opportunity for the
productive parts of our farming sector
to improve in terms of productivity,
responsibility and impact.
The other source of optimism is
in respect of the great blank canvases
that our less-productive agricultural
land represents – the great marshes
of the East of England and Dartmoor;
places where genuinely productive and
profitable farming just isn’t possible. I
think farmers in those places can fare
much better by diversifying, with the
aim first and foremost of helping nature
recover, and food production in those
autumn 2019 | Outdoor focus 5