29/11/23 - National Parks and National Forests, Landscape Recovery along the River Axe and replacing Glastir
Will more community forests and a woodland competition help meet - or at least get nearer reaching - tree planting targets?
The Government is due to announce new funding for National Parks in England along with plans to identify an area for a new National Park. This follows news that new community forests will be created in Derbyshire and the Tees Valley...with a competition also held for a new National Forest as well. So will more community forests and a woodland competition help meet - or at least get nearer reaching - tree planting targets? The Woodland Trust says that while it will draw attention, what's really needed are long term commitments.
The Landscape Recovery programme in England is billed by DEFRA as taking 'a radical and large scale approach to environment and climate goods'. We visit the border between Devon and Dorset where just over thirty farmers are signed up for a project which aims to keep agriculture productive whilst lessening its impact on the River Axe.
And the Welsh Government is facing calls to prove its commitment to farmers and maintain the rural affairs budget next year. It follows cuts to that budget this year and the ending of the Glastir scheme in a month's time. Glastir pays farmers for environmental work and will be replaced by the Habitat Wales scheme. The Welsh Government says that will cover more farms. But some farmers say the payments under Habitat Wales will be much lower than what they got under Glastir.
Presented by Charlotte Smith
Produced for Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Audio in Bristol by Heather Simons
Last on
Broadcast
- Wed 29 Nov 2023 05:45Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 4
Podcast
-
Farming Today
The latest news about food, farming and the countryside