so what are you saying ? the only benefit really was to the rspb who regained wetlands! the rest that had interest in the project were trumped up created jobs in my opinion,with there own agendas for justifying there wages!
That is dreary, uninformed and utterly nonsensical guff.
Firstly reconnecting the river with its natural floodplain reduces bankside erosion which will reduce sediment deposition and help to protect spawning gravels, both at the Preston Deeps stretch and any stretches downstream.
Secondly, there are positive benefits to the overall Ribble Catchment coming from changes to farming practices. Natural England have part funded (50%) the post of an adviser (the RSPB fund the other 50%) to provide advice to farmers and landowners on the suitability of their land for entry into Higher Level Stewardship (HLS). HLS offers farmers and landowners a payment to de-intensify areas of grassland in key areas of the catchment – land directly on the river, land adjacent to tributaries and inflows and potentially any other land deemed ‘high risk’ from a water quality perspective. The payments made through HLS are based on an income foregone basis, so the farmers don’t really profit from entering into the scheme, the payments they receive simply compensate them for the loss of production. The payments don't account for the 'hassle factor'.
In general terms, farmers who enter their grassland into HLS are not permitted to apply blanket applications of pesticides, nor use artificial fertilisers or slurry. Stocking rates are reduced to prevent poaching and no out-wintering of cattle is permitted. In some cases the farmers will also be encouraged to maintain high water levels in the spring and early summer months for the benefit of wading birds.
By increasing the area of low-intensity grassland in the floodplain, aside from improving habitat for wading birds and other farmland biodiversity, is proven to reduce diffuse pollution from nitrate leaching, localised ammonia deposition and soil wash/run-off (which carries with it phosphate).
Long-term data shows that the some parts of the Ribble suffer from excessive concentrations of harmful pesticides such as MCPA and Mecoprop, substances that are known to have a damaging impact on the aquatic environment. Land under HLS management will only receive spot-treatment of pesticides in exceptional circumstances, certainly no blanket applications.
Clearly all of the above will benefit the Ribble catchment as a whole, as someone who occasionally coarse fishes downstream of Long Preston Deeps I’m delighted by what has happened. Only someone in complete denial of the facts could argue that what is happening at Long Preston won’t benefit the Ribble downstream.
It is regrettable that you have decided to make assumptions about the partners involved in this project. Clearly you know very little about them or the work that they do, however this clearly hasn't deterred you from slagging them off on a public forum. If you’d bother to do your research you’d find out that many of them are very well qualified, hard-working individuals that are committed to improving the environment.
The farmers that have taken part in this project also should be singled out for some praise, they have stepped-up to help deliver the goods for the environment, in this case the Ribble. It’s pretty tough being a grassland farmer in that part of the world, as I’ve already written they are no wealthier for entering into HLS. It would have been easier for them to carry on as they were but they didn’t and for that they deserve some credit.
I watched the video this morning and what struck me was the repeated phrase "renaturalisation" ( is their such a word?) what has been achieved so far looks good but only time will tell if they have got it right, nature has a way of disagreeing with man about what's natural. one things for sure flood banks are not natural, still its a start at putting right what should have been left alone in the first place. Were there any coarse angling clubs represented?
