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People love the Welsh countryside. It’s key to our national identity and nature is a crucial part of what makes it so special. Yet, the State of Nature 2016: Wales report published last week (21 September) showed that we’ve lost species once common in our countryside, and face losing many more if we don’t step up our efforts in the years ahead: with one in 14 species in Wales is heading towards extinction. How we manage the land has a huge impact on its ability to support nature and with farmland covering over 70% of Wales, farmers and land managers are uniquely placed to help meet the challenge of restoring nature, and to capitalise on the wider opportunities this brings.
Conservation organisations across Wales have called on the Welsh Government to seize the opportunity to reform our farming policies to make Wales a world leading sustainable country.
One of the most significant influences on the way we manage our land in recent decades has been the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), the purpose of which is to support and encourage farming that produces food in ways that takes care of the soil, water, landscape and nature.
Despite 50 years of support, the CAP has not built a resilient agricultural industry in Wales, it has failed to prevent damage to the environment, halt the loss of wildlife and it has even potentially put some sectors such as our extensive upland beef and sheep farming at risk of disappearing altogether.
A group of 15 organisations representing a broad range of Welsh land management, environmental and wildlife interests believe leaving the European Union will be a defining event for farming and our environment. The group, which includes RSPB Cymru, The Soil Association, Confor and the National Trust believe that now is the time to create policies that deliver for our agricultural and land management industries, our wider rural economies and communities, the environment and nature, which will help the Welsh Government meet its aspiration to become a world leading sustainable country.
Any proposed changes should be made available to the public so they can help shape any future policy. For example recent polling shows that the public want support for agriculture to do more for nature. This isn’t a choice between food and the environment; the future of food, farming and nature is inevitably linked.
The Welsh Government is currently establishing the priorities for Wales in preparation for discussions with the UK Government on the future allocation of budget once the UK leaves the EU and what this money should be used for. To highlight the strength of feeling regarding the need for progressive reform of existing land use policies in Wales, the 15 organisations have written a letter to the Welsh Government which highlights the opportunities and benefits to everyone in the country that new sustainable land management policies will provide.
We believe any new policy should secure sustainable amounts of safe, healthy food and timber and provide a diverse range of sustainable products that generate income and employment for rural businesses and contribute to a diverse rural economy.
It should also support sustainable land management that maintains and enhances nature and the resilience of ecosystems to provide wide ranging social, economic and environmental benefits for Wales.
Ensuring that all public money invested in land management delivers true value by securing benefits for wider society, and engaging with wider society to help people make choices that recognise and reward sustainability should also be key aspects of any new policy.
The organisations involved acknowledge that a realistic transition period will be vital and particularly important for the most economically vulnerable; such as those in our extensive livestock sectors, who are often farming in marginal areas but are vital for the environment, the landscape and for nature.
This new framework which we are recommending will support progressive, innovative farmers and land managers, providing them with the certainty to engage in sustainable production. It will ensure public money is focused on supporting resilient rural businesses capable of meeting diverse environmental challenges - such as the restoration of habitats for wildlife, storage of atmospheric carbon to alleviate climate change, natural management of flood risk and drinking water and ensuring the best use of the land in Wales.
We should have a countryside rich in nature alongside vibrant communities and a thriving rural economy, which also delivers multiple benefits for society.
Let’s grasp this once in a lifetime opportunity to revitalise our countryside.
The 15 partners for the project include: RSPB Cymru, National Trust, WWF Wales, Soil Association, Salmon and Trout Conservation Wales, The Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales, Buglife, Butterfly Conservation Wales, Bat Conservation Trust, Snowdonia Society, Wildlife Trust Wales, Woodland Trust, Amphibian and Reptile Conservation, Plantlife Wales, Confor Wales.