Page 13 - Wildlife News August 2018
P. 13
Our vision for the future wneLoilawrdtgesli/safnteneUtdrwKui-sswssutisde.es:
1 Nature is normal All fishing is sustainable and Fight for a green future
Children have trees to climb, jobs are secure.
fields to explore and ponds 6 Recovering seas Imagine being a swift with the freedom of
to investigate. Sightings of whales and racing through the skies and screaming
other sea creatures are those wonderful screeches. How different
2 Green developments increasing. the patchwork of our towns, cities and
All housing and other countryside would look from the air!
development creates a net 7 Fertile soils You’d search for places with abundant
gain for wildlife. Nutrients are staying locked insects to eat and safe places to nest. It wouldn’t be easy
in soils rather than eroding finding food because in recent years insects have declined
3 Wilder cities and blowing away. so dramatically. There are not many invertebrates left in our
Green roofs, green walls, parks and arable fields, but lucky swifts may find a Local
pocket parks and trees are 8 Restored uplands Wildlife Site. Here there may be up to 800 different species
common. Instead of just close-grazed compared to less than 100 in a typical playing field. In Local
grasslands, the trees and Wildlife Sites soils are healthy, plants can flourish and
4 Buzzing countryside peat bogs are back, biodiversity, including insects, can thrive.
Farmland is crisscrossed by reducing flooding and Protecting, managing and expanding the network of
colourful habitat for wild locking up CO2 from the air. Local Wildlife Sites is central to the work of The Wildlife
pollinators. Trusts who regularly advise local authorities, farmers and
developers to this end. The recent Agriculture Command
5 Long-term fisheries Paper, published by the Westminster Government, supports
greater investment in wildlife in England, and Trusts are
8 campaigning across the UK to ensure that such investment
happens, not least in Local Wildlife Sites.
2 However, government budgets for farming will be
squeezed, and there is growing pressure to remove
perceived barriers to infrastructure and built development,
like Local Wildlife Sites. To ensure the voice of wildlife is
heard over the cacophony of Brexit, we’ve been
campaigning under the banner of #ActSwiftly. It’s vital that
all governments hear from as many people as possible
about the need to make the right decisions about new
farming and planning policy.
We’re determined that the future should be about
nature’s recovery. Your support for your Trust is helping
protect wildlife for the future. Thank you from the swifts.
Stephanie Hilborne OBE
Chief Executive of The Wildlife Trusts
@stephhilborne
Read the report and join our If your family or friends share your interest in wildlife please
campaign on wtru.st/natnet encourage them to join their nearest Wildlife Trust. There are 47
Wildlife Trusts across the UK with more than 800,000 members.
We are the largest UK voluntary organisation dedicated to
conserving all the UK’s habitats and species.
For links to all Wildlife Trusts go to wildlifetrusts.org
twitter @wildlifetrusts
facebook.com/wildlifetrusts
Wildlife news / August 2018 13
