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The value of peatland as a carbon sink and wildlife habitat has become increasingly recognised in recent years, and the Scottish Government has committed to investing more than £250 million over the next 10 years towards peatland restoration projects. This funding is administered via the Peatland Action project, managed by the heritage body NatureScot.
Crawford Mackay COP26 and the variety of reporting and comment emanating from the Glasgow event underline how much effort and money will be required to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in order to stop climate change. Safeguarding life on our planet will involve and affect almost every aspect of how we live and work – investment, domestic and international trade, supply chains for goods and services – everything. We can also expect much regulatory and media scrutiny in this process.
Ian Hope I listened with interest on the first weekday of COP26 as the people of Glasgow were interviewed on the radio. When asked about what needed to change, the common response was to stop eating meat. No mention of electric cars, less travel, more public transport, more sustainable buildings, greater renewable energy, air and water quality, just stop eating meat!
Eleanor Harris The Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration on Forests and Land Use committed 128 countries to strengthening efforts to conserve forests, accelerating their restoration, and promoting sustainable production. What implications does this have for land in the UK?
Effective stewardship of natural resources is no longer the sole preserve of government and charities. As Strath Slater reports, landowners are discovering that care for the environment is good business.
It seems to be suddenly everywhere – but is Natural Capital a passing fashion? I don’t believe so.
In this Q&A;, Jamie Thain, investment Partner at Galbraith, talks with Anne Johnstone, founder of Fair Futures Partnership, about ESG and Net Zero Carbon Strategies.
Buying a home is investing in a dream. The summer evenings we’ll spend in the garden. The winter nights with friends to dinner, perhaps with produce from our garden or smallholding. The space our children will enjoy and one day inherit.
In 1994 the partners at Healey Farms in Northumberland entered their first stewardship agreement – an arrangement rewarding farmers and land managers for managing their land to protect and enhance the environment and wildlife.
The strictures prompted by Covid hit public finances hard, but recovery presents opportunities for environmental reform, says Mike Reid.
As land managers look toward a future acting as stewards of our natural capital, restoring habitats, sequestering carbon and enriching biodiversity, a key question arises – where to start? Image: © Space Intelligence Ltd, Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0., © OpenStreetMap contributors
I’ve always been fascinated by how organisms relate to one another and to their physical surroundings – this impacts daily on many aspects of the land, and on the woodland management work in which we are involved.
Will working from home be the new norm? It seems it just may be.
The country house, whether a Georgian gem, Victorian Gothic wonder, delightful Edwardian house or a more modern and minimalistic property, the appeal of this very British property entity, sitting within its own private grounds and looking out over undisturbed and peaceful surroundings, has never been stronger.
The expansive and wild lands of Scotland have for generations had great romantic appeal; the rugged mountain ranges, extensive coastlines, rolling countryside of the lowlands, picturesque rivers, complimented by a wealth of historical houses and buildings.
In my favourite play, Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia, the modern lady of a country house bemoans how in 1809 the gardener Noakes, following the ‘close to nature’ fashion of Capability Brown, had swept away the intricate, formal Georgian box hedges and rose walks in favour of parkland dotted with sheep and spreading trees. ‘Culpability Noakes’ she calls him. Since I first saw Arcadia, I’ve been fascinated by how tastes and fashions – which can mutate and spread through society as quickly as a pandemic – drive us to shape and reshape the natural world.
In our day-to-day work supporting farmers across the country, we recognise that the transition to a more sustainable business model and operation can be challenging for farmers without proper guidance.
The cancellation of agricultural shows has been keenly felt by the agricultural community. After the rush of spring work, a trip to a show – whether it’s the Royal Highland Show or one closer to home – is something to look forward to and was very much missed last year.
The England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) is a new scheme administered by the Forestry Commission (FC) which opened for applications on 9 June. The aim of the scheme, which is funded through the Nature for Climate Fund, is to help achieve Net Zero targets by 2050.
Peatland restoration is being encouraged by policymakers in the UK as an effective nature-based response to climate change and biodiversity loss.
