England's nature reserves, national parks and protected areas are failing in four out of five key quality benchmarks, a major year-long government-sponsored review has concurred. Around £1.1bn is needed to help rebuild nature in England.
A 14-member team of wildlife experts has warned that England's wildlife protection areas are not effective enough at preserving species due to poor management, small size, ease of reach by the wider public (especially in urban areas) and lack of inter-connections between wild areas. The only measure met by the sites is their ability to support the full-range of England's wildlife and habitats.
The report Making Space for Nature: a review of England’s wildlife sites and ecological network was recently submitted by the experts to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA).
The report, commissioned by the previous environment secretary Hilary Benn last September, says the "serious short-comings" on the four criteria demonstrate that England lacks a "coherent and resilient ecological network" for its animals and plants. The report is expected to influence Britain's first white paper on the natural environment in 20 years.
Instead of isolated nature reserves, the experts have called for the country to be covered by ‘ecological networks’ that allow animals to move between a series of protected sites. This ‘landscape scale conservation’ will ensure that ‘green corridors’ are kept open between protected sites by ensuring farmland, parks or even housing developments are aware of the needs of wildlife, they said.
Non-designated sites like motorway verges, railway embankments and even gardens will be better managed to sustain rare species. Even old landfill sites, car parks and derelict factories can be managed to encourage wildlife.
The experts have called for 12 new ‘ecological restoration zones’ where local authorities, businesses and landowners team up to ensure particular species can thrive or even return to that area. For example creating wetland by factories, farms and docks along the Thames Estuary so that the avocet can return to the area.
It will cost between £600 million and £1.1 billion to buy land that is under threat, plant trees, establish new parks, better manage existing nature reserves, transform derelict sites into nature areas and set up the new ecological restoration zones.
The report's authors have made 24 recommendations to create stronger habitats. The measures include better management of habitats, setting up new ecological restoration zones and improved water quality and flood protection.
