The Countryside Agency outlines its strategy for sustainable land management in the future.
Countryside Agency Archive

Breadcrumbs

Radical Changes Needed to Secure Future of Countryside - 27 June 2001

"If we are to save agriculture from becoming a sunset industry, we need to take action now," said Countryside Agency chairman, Ewen Cameron at the launch of the Agency's new Strategy for Sustainable Land Management in England today (27 June). "Agriculture is in its worst recession since the 1930s and farmers have found themselves ever more marginalised from a society suspicious of their produce.

"We need to bring farmers in from the cold. It is time to re-engage farmers in a new contract with the public. Consumers need to understand the relationship between the products they buy and the maintenance of an attractive, economically vibrant countryside, so that they can make informed choices; while farmers are paid for producing in a sustainable fashion what the public want, high quality reasonable priced food and a quality environment. 

"Nearly everyone is agreed about what we want, and that a radical reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is fundamental. While measures under the Rural Development Regulation are a start, it is not nearly enough. The CAP needs to be transformed into a new system of aid encouraging sustainable land management practices and reorienting payments away from production support towards rural development.But to achieve this, there are two major challenges - one for all of us to build broad political support among a much wider range of stakeholders and for government to secure change through negotiation across Europe. By 2010 at least one third of the CAP budget should be allocated to agri-environment schemes, one third to rural development and only one third to farm income/market support. 

But Mr Cameron warned "It would be impossible to regulate to achieve many of the benefits which society expects, and it will be impractical, we believe, to have individually negotiated contracts with every farm. We need to design new mechanisms which will deliver these benefits, while at the same time encouraging enterprise and innovation. As part of that fresh thinking, we propose two new approaches:

  • local land management strategies to deliver public benefits - bringing local authorities and land managers together to prepare land management strategies to ensure that change happens at a local level enhancing a range of benefits such as soil and water conservation, biodiversity, landscape character and access for recreation. Individual plans would trigger financial support from local authorities.
  • creating a market for non-market benefits - such asflood prevention. For example, a farmer could be paid to set aside some land as a flood plain upstream of a townat risk ."  

The Countryside Agency's Strategy for Sustainable Land Management in England outlines four principles to guide the future development of policy and practice:

  • multi-functionality : land should be managed to deliver a wide range of benefits beyond food and fibre production
  • sustainability : land management should reflect principles of sustainable development
  • integration: land management must be integrated with rural development
  • subsidiarity : a framework which can reflect regional and local needs and aspirations  

The strategy will be available shortly on the Countryside Agency website at www.countryside.gov.uk  or by telephoning 01242 533273.

Notes to editors

The Countryside Agency is responsible for advising government and taking action on issues relating to the social, economic and environmental well being of the English countryside.