As George Monbiot's book does the rounds amongst enthusiastic and hopeful conservationists, one volunteer at least has indicated a desire to create a Rewilding area and asked me if there is a suitable piece of farmland on which to create an area.
First response: almost every landowner I know locally will need to be compensated with an equivalent amount that they would otherwise gain from having the land in production. Two wet years have put them under serous financial pressure and the uncertainty around CAP Reform exacerbates this concern.
What about the Environment Bank pilot in Essex?
The principle here is that money raised from developers in planning applications is paid into a bank from which a landowner can draw to pay for managing a site for wildlife in perpetuity. Sounds fantastic but it is just not taking off.
Why ?
- its not mandatory for developers to contribute, local councils aren't enforcing it
- there are geographical (borough) restrictions making it hard to find suitable sites
- landowners aren't registering an interest in any numbers : reasons vary from just not getting it on their radar (lack of encouragement by Defra?), reluctance to commit to a land use for a long period, suspicion, thinking things are hard enough without this extra hassle for biodiversity
Its still possible. Defra may sharpen up the incentives and the EA might get some clout to encourage a farmer to use that soggy corner of the field by the river to carry out out water filtration and flood regulation all with added benefits for biodiversity and as compensation for that former lovely piece of scrub that is now a building site.
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