Land tax regime could be best way to manage moorlands

From: Martin Hemingway, Regional Co-ordinator, Yorkshire & the Humber Green Party.
Grouse shooting and the management of Yorkshire's moors continues to divide opinion.Grouse shooting and the management of Yorkshire's moors continues to divide opinion.
Grouse shooting and the management of Yorkshire's moors continues to divide opinion.

NICK Downshire (The Yorkshire Post, April 4) appears to us to be missing several points – perhaps wilfully – in relation to moorland burning. Burning of grouse moors has, he notes, ‘been part of land management for generations’, but this is a weak argument.

The natural vegetation of the moors is woodland – grazing and burning are what prevent the re-establishment of our upland forests. Reforestation of the upland would have countless benefits.

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Damaging our moorland is national travesty – Yorkshire Post Letters
How should Yorkshire's moors be managed? Photo: Danny Lawson/PAHow should Yorkshire's moors be managed? Photo: Danny Lawson/PA
How should Yorkshire's moors be managed? Photo: Danny Lawson/PA
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Trees would lock up much more carbon dioxide than heather, and keep it locked up rather than released by regular burning. Interception and a thicker layer of leaf litter, humus and soil would reduce the risk of flooding in the lowlands. Mixed woodland would provide greater biodiversity.

Keeping things as they are benefits a few landowners, but at a cost, in terms of refusing to reconstruct a more accommodating natural environment for the rest of us.

With the threat of climate breakdown, with the mounting costs of flooding and flood protection, it may be that a change in ownership will be needed, or at least a land tax regime that favours environmentally responsible behaviour.

Editor’s note: first and foremost - and rarely have I written down these words with more sincerity - I hope this finds you well.

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James Mitchinson

Editor

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