Conder Head back in October 2018
This fire on the Abbeystead Estate’s Conder Head back in October has interested me.
Is it on blanket bog? Apparently not.
Is it on deep peat? Apparently so – see below a reply I received today.
Well, we got there in the end. Natural England/Defra appear to be happy for deep peat areas to be burned for grouse shooting provided they are not blanket bogs. This is the agency and department on which we rely for environmental protection.
[registration_form]
Can the general public see these maps of deep peat areas online? It would make monitoring whether burning is being carried out in the wrong places much easier.
Carole – if you ask then you might get them electronically. You might need some quite nifty software to cope with them though. But if you wanted paper copies you might get them for certain areas. Or you might be told that they are still drafts and aren’t ready yet.
I don’t feel so guilty for lighting my woodburner now after seeing that NE are happy with burning whole moorlands.
Shame there are no datasets for the historical existence of blanket bogs, then. Then again, gripping is one (easily mappable) indicator that can be used; where the land was drained to make for more heather friendly conditions, it should be restored to its previous state.
I’m a bit confused. Surely burning deep peat is even worse than burning blanket bog ?
So I do have concerns with the service I’m receiving from NE and the biodiversity Minister.
Her Natural Capital Committee says that restoration of deep peat is one of the 5 areas in which it can currently demonstrate clear economic benefit – but then we wouldn’t want something as simple as climate change and carbon capture to interfere with grouse shooting, would we, especially as most of them probably don’t believe in climate change anyway.
Mark while wood stoves are in the news; to reach a wider audience how about a short letter and picture to the newspapers and Javid. Asking why wood stove owner’s have to be harassed while people can burn moorland just for the pointlss fun of shooting more grouse?
No doubt a high concentration of wood stoves causes a nice rustic wood-smoky smell in cities towns and ‘burbs but they will have to prise open my cold stiff fingers to take away my Fiskars X27 splitting axe and Estwing 4lb splitting tool
I thought deep peat was by definition Blanket Bog! Been away in North Yorkshire for a week. Lots of fresh burns on Dallowgill and Dallow moors of the Dallowgill estate, on Pott, Masham and Arnagill Moors of Swinton estate and Lofthouse Moor of Ramsden Estates. I think all of these are Blanket bogs.