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Monthly Archives: June 2015
Rampisham Down planning permission called in for Public Inquiry
Good news today from the Department for Communities and Local Government. New Secretary of State Greg Clark has decided that West Dorset District Council’s extraordinary decision to give planning permission for a 50ha solar farm on a Site of Special … Continue reading
Posted in public inquiries, Rampisham Down, Solar Farms, SSSis, Uncategorized
Tagged Public Inquiry, Rampisham Down, Solar Farms, SSSIs
15 Comments
Rampisham Down in Flower: what British Solar Renewables don’t want you to see
I thought it would be a good idea to see how Rampisham Down was looking as we have had some good weather and the site had received some (not enough but a start) grazing in the winter to remove some … Continue reading
Mown Down or Gone to Seed: the confusing world of verges and churchyards
Mowing and not mowing the grass is making the news in the South West of England this Summer. Police were informed after a churchyard nature area was “accidentally” mown by contractors in Cornwall. According to the Western Morning News the … Continue reading
Posted in churchyards, mowing, road verges
Tagged Caring for God's Acre, churchyards, mowing, Road Verges
9 Comments
half-baked ONS mix up their semi-natural with the semi-improved
The Office for National Statistics has produced some infographics to celebrate World Environment Day. This has left the BBC statistics editor somewhat bemused. As the UK’s natural capital was calculated to be worth £1.5 trillion in 2011 (I expect it’s … Continue reading
Make with the Rake
After seven hours raking on monday, my back is just about ok now. I had asked the Council to come and do a partial early cut of Maumbury Rings. And they did. As they haven’t managed to commit themselves (yet) … Continue reading
Posted in grasslands, greenspace, management, maumbury rings, meadows
Tagged greenspace, Maumbury Rings, mowing
2 Comments
Defra budget takes another hit; farmers worried they may have to pay for the Badger Cull
Defra received a further cut to its budget last week, shaving another £83M off. This is on top of the already planned £200M cut to take place this financial year. The Defra budget has declined by around 25% since 2010, … Continue reading
The Solar Farm Gold Rush is over
This spring it was almost as though there was a gold rush around here, but the gold was a very generous public subsidy for private landowners to build solar farms; and the subsidy magically … Continue reading
Verging on the Spectacular
Roads and wildlife have a complex relationship. Roads can still cause damage and destruction to wildlife and nature. But roads and other infrastructure can also create the opportunity to let nature thrive. Just down the road from us is the … Continue reading
a new nature blog 