{"id":37899,"date":"2024-06-25T08:31:39","date_gmt":"2024-06-25T06:31:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/705d93c6-230d-47ad-bc2c-b2eb9fa2cccb"},"modified":"2024-06-25T09:26:41","modified_gmt":"2024-06-25T07:26:41","slug":"restore-nature-now-the-story-behind-the-campaign-to-save-britains-wildlife","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/rss_feed\/restore-nature-now-the-story-behind-the-campaign-to-save-britains-wildlife\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Restore Nature Now\u2019 \u2013 the story behind the campaign to save Britain\u2019s wildlife"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nature is suffering in the UK, and something has to be done, according to a coalition of 83 nature groups, including the National Trust and the RSPB. James Fair explains why they are taking the government to court \u2013 and marching to protest in London. <\/p>

By <\/p>

Published: Tuesday, 25 June 2024 at 06:31 AM<\/p>

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Three years ago, the Government passed the\u00a0Environment Act<\/a>, which committed it to radical and far-reaching promises about how nature was going to be restored in England. \u201cIt will halt the decline in species by 2030,\u201d the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) stated at the time.<\/strong><\/p>

These commitments were laid down in law \u2013\u00a0and now pillars of the environmental community \u2013 such as the RSPB, The Wildlife Trusts, WWF-UK and the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT) \u2013 say they are determined to ensure that the government carries them out.<\/p>

On Saturday June 22 an estimated 60,000 people marched through Central London to demand that government take action to protect wildlife in the UK. Credit: Matt Bristow photography<\/figcaption><\/figure>

What was the Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP)<\/h2>

Under the 2021 Environment Act, the Government had to produce something it called an Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP) \u2013\u00a0a sort of step-by-step guide on how it was going to fulfil its pledges on biodiversity, with some interim targets along the way like mile-markers in a marathon. That pledge to halt the decline in biodiversity<\/a> by 2030 wasn\u2019t the only commitment it made, but it was one of the biggest.\u00a0<\/p>

How many EIP targets will they hit?<\/h3>

One of the first signs of trouble came earlier this year. The Government\u2019s nature watchdog, the\u00a0Office for Environmental Protection<\/a>\u00a0(the OEP \u2013 a child of the same act that spawned the EIP) published a report in January which said that out of 40 of these legally binding targets, the Government was on course to meet only four of them. Many of them, it said, couldn\u2019t be assessed because of a lack of evidence.<\/p>

For example, the OEP report highlighted the plight of Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs). As many of them are in a bad condition, one of the commitments under the EIP is to make sure that plans are put in place to have at least 50 per cent of them to be recovering by 2028 \u2013\u00a0just four years from now.\u00a0<\/p>

But the OEP found that SSSIs were going the other way \u2013\u00a0their condition continued to deteriorate between 2017 and 2022.\u00a0<\/p>

Another target we seem likely to miss \u2013\u00a0at current the current rate of progress \u2013\u00a0is increasing woodland cover from 14.5% to 16.5% of total land area. The UK has signed up to an international agreement committing us to protect 30% of our land and marine areas by 2030 (the 30 by 30 target), and the OEP suggests this too is in doubt.\u00a0<\/p>

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The Restore Nature Now march was organised by a coalition of nature groups, and backed by celebrities including broadcaster Chris Packham and actress Emma Thompson. Matt Bristow photography<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Who is taking the government to court?<\/h2>

As a result, a coalition of 83 wildlife groups is challenging the government\u2019s lack of progress. \u201cOur legal advice suggests there is a continuous duty to keep the plan under review,\u201d says Richard Benwell, chief executive of Wildlife & Countryside Link (WCL), which acts as an umbrella organisation for the RSPB, The Wildlife Trusts and many organisations. \u201cRather than waiting for us to miss the targets, the rules should make sure the Government is constantly held to account along the way.\u201d<\/p>

Benwell points out that the government has missed nature targets before. In an agreement reached under an international treaty called the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the UK agreed to halt biodiversity declines as long ago as 2010. \u201cWe didn\u2019t meet any of the indicators for that goal, but that was a weak law \u2013\u00a0this time it\u2019s there in black and white,\u201d says Benwell.<\/p>

DEFRA was unable to respond to any questions about the legal challenge, but in a statement it said that the legally the Government is required to review the EIP every five years, with the next one due in January 2028. \u201cFive years is considered to be sufficient time for some progress to be made against the EIP and for early results to be obtained,\u201d DEFRA added. Weaknesses and gaps in the EIP and required policy changes can then be identified as a result.\u00a0<\/p>

\"Restore
It was the UK’s biggest ever march for nature and climate. Matt Bristow photography<\/figcaption><\/figure>

A crunch moment for nature\u00a0<\/h2>

There is strong statistical evidence that the UK\u2019s wildlife is in crisis. According to the last\u00a0State of Nature<\/a>\u00a0report published in 2023, nearly one in six species is at risk of extinction in this country. The abundance of breeding birds has declined by 14 per cent since 1970, with farmland bird numbers more than halving in that time.<\/p>

Despite this ecological crisis, there has been a marked absence of environmental and nature issues from the biggest debates and interviews during this General Election campaign. In the circumstances, that\u2019s understandable, says Dale Vince, the renewable energy entrepreneur who is a Labour Party donor and campaigner. \u201cThe cost of living crisis is foremost in people\u2019s minds, and a lot of the election has been focused on that,\u201d he says. \u201cNature has had to take a back seat to that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>

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The Restore Nature Now march on 22 June 2024 in London was the biggest demonstration in so far in the run up to the General Election. Matt Bristow photography<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Putting nature on the agenda<\/h2>

Partly to compensate for this, wildlife groups, backed by activists and celebrities including Chris Packham<\/a>, Queen guitarist Brian May, and water pollution campaigner and Labour supporter Feargal Sharkey, gathered in London to protest on Saturday June 22 for\u00a0the\u00a0Restore Nature Now<\/a>\u00a0march.<\/p>

\u201cWe are trying to demonstrate that the British public cares about the nature and climate crisis and that they don\u2019t think politicians are doing enough to address it,\u201d says Craig Bennett, chief executive of The Wildlife Trusts. \u201cWhoever forms the next government, and whoever is the official opposition, need to understand these issues matter to the people of this country.\u201d<\/p>

So what do the parties say?<\/h2>

While there has been a notable absence of environmental issues \u2013\u00a0even climate change \u2013\u00a0from the main election debates, there were a plethora of pledges about them made in party manifestos. The Conservatives, for example, made positive noises about implementing nature-based solutions for issues such as flooding, though at the same time, some conservationists expressed alarm over promises to \u201csimplify the planning system to make it easier to build\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>

Labour commitments included \u201ctaking action to meet our Environment Act targets\u201d and restoring and expanding important wildlife habitats such as wetlands, peatbogs and woodlands. It has promised to create nine new national river walks and three new national forests as part of its drive to increase access to nature for people in every area of the country.<\/p>

The Liberal Democrats added something arguably more concrete to their commitments \u2013\u00a0the promise of \u00a31 billion a year to wildlife-friendly farming, seen by conservationists as one of the key methods by which nature can be restored. About 70 per cent of the UK is farmland, and if nature is to be brought back, that\u2019s where it will happen.<\/p>

The Green Party, perhaps not surprisingly, promised to go even further, saying they it would \u201ctriple support to farmers over the next five-year parliament to support the transition to nature-friendly farming.\u201d It would also pass a Rights of Nature Act, which would mean nature could not be exploited for financial gain.<\/p>

The Scottish National Party (SNP) only pledged its \u201ccommitment to tackling the twin crises of climate change and nature loss is unwavering\u201d, while the Welsh nationalist party, Plaid Cymru called on the next UK Government to consider adopting an alternative to Gross Domestic Product to measure the UK economy because of the scale of the climate and nature emergency.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>

Reform UK \u2013\u00a0the party now led by former UKIP leader Nigel Farage \u2013\u00a0made no references to nature or wildlife in its \u201cContract\u201d, but did pledge to scrap the UK\u2019s commitment to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050 \u201cto slash energy bills and save each household \u00a3500 a year.\u201d<\/p>

Keeping up pressure<\/h2>

But whoever wins the General Election, it is clear that environmental and wildlife groups will not give the new government an easy ride. That legal challenge looks unlikely to go away, and opinion polls consistently reveal that the public really want politicians to take action to restore nature \u2013\u00a0for example, 71% of people do not believe enough is being done to protect the environment for future generations, according to a\u00a0YouGov poll conducted in\u00a0<\/strong>May for Wildlife and Countryside Link.\u00a0<\/p>

And as Benwell says: \u201cIn the manifestos, there are clear statements of intent that whichever party is elected is telling us they will meet the critical and legally binding targets. We are pleased to see those statements of intent and will hold the Government to account for it.\u201d<\/p>

Images: Matt Bristow photography<\/em><\/p>

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