Landscape Conservation ENVS1
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- Created on: 16-04-14 15:35
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Landscape Conservation for Informal Public Recreation - ENVS1
- increased affluence, leisure time, car owners -> people are spending more time in the countryside -> important to conserve landscape
Landscape protection
- conserving aesthetic appeal
- maintenance of natural features/features produced by human activities
- eg. woodlands/hedgerows/stone walls/in-field trees/ditches/ponds
- some protected by preventing damaging activites
- others need active management -> counteract natural processes (eg. ecological succession)
Landscape enhancement
- planting small woodland areas
- replacing conifers with mixed indigenous species
- 'soft' riverbank management
- restoration of river meanders
Visitor management
- careful provision of facilities that do not damage the countryside
- eg. paths/car parks/information points/recreational facilities
- can be designed to fit into surroundings -> traditional designs, local materials
- paths made of sand/gravel/stone
- buildings/signs made of wood
- car parks divided up with hedgesto disguise their size, and protective matting grass instead of tarmac
- people will usually stay near the facilities available to them - the honeypot sites (areas that are attractive to visitors) -> protects sensitive wildlife sites and prevents disturbance
- a honeypot site could include a visitors centre, cafe, toilets, guided walks
Governmental Organisations
Natural England/ Countryside Council for Wales
- desginate areas for landscape conservation
- set up controls/regulations -> must be followed by landowners/other users
- protects against undesirable change
- damaging changes prevented -> clearance of woodlands/urban expansion
- beneficial management activities are carried out -> grazing meadows/moorlands to stop ecological succession and maintain the plagioclimax
National Parks
- the original 10 National Parks in UK were established in the 1950s following the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act (1949) -> a response to growing demand for public access to the countryside
- designated by Natural England (see above)
- AIMS:
- to conserve and enhance their natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage
- to promote opportunities for understanding and enjoyment
- to maintain the rural economy
- as they do not own the National Parks, the National Park Authority (organisation that runs a National Park) manage them by controlling the activites of landowners through planning and development restricitions and management agreements
- despite the aims being to protect and conserve, some controversial developments have taken place that seem to contradict the aims -> these are usually justified as being for the 'greater national good'
- Some examples:
- military training
- reservoirs (flooding threatens habitats)
- quarrying
- conifer plantations
- tourism developments
- nuclear power stations/hydro electric power/wind farms
- There are also conflicts of interest within the National Parks:
- erosion - large numbers of people walking/cyclists/horse riders - soil erosion
- can be prevented by directing visitors away from vulnerable areas or using resistant suraces for paths -> gravel, wood
- congestion - large numbers of visitors in cars cause traffic congestion and increase pollution
- encouraged use of public transport or bikes
- disturbance of wildlife - trampled vegetation/ disruption of ground nesting birds, repeated disturbance can cause breeding failure
- restricted access of vulnerable areas
- litter - can cause livestock/wildlife to choke, become entangled and be injured -> broken glass can act as a magnifying glass on sunny days and start fires
- no litter signs, more bins, perhaps and litter fine
- displacement of local community - living in a scenically beautiful area has attracted people to buy houses for retirement or as holiday homes, reducing number of houses available to local residents and driving house prices up -> restrictions on development prevent new houses being built to meet demand
- houses can be built specifically for locals (eg. in Exmoor)
- conflicts between recreational users - quiet activites such as walking/canoeing can be disturbed by water skiing/helicopter flights
- speed limits for boats (eg. Lake District)
- erosion - large numbers of people walking/cyclists/horse riders - soil erosion
Areas of Outstanding National Beauty (AONBs)
- designated for landscape qualities for the purpose of conserving and enhancing their natural beauty
- includes landform, geology, plants, animals, landscape features, history of human settlement
- designated by Natural England, but administered by the County Council
- areas of scenic and recreational amenity value, like National Parks
- generally less wild/remote and usually in hilly/lowland areas
- more intensively used that National Parks, so agriculture, rural industry and residential areas are more important
- inappropriate to place restrictions on these
- fewer opportunities for open air recreation
- rights of public access not an aim
- proposals for developments are controlled by planning regulations -> less strict than National Parks
- housing developments permitted for local needs, expanding existing industry permitted but new industry is not
Heritage Coasts
- designated by Natural England
- finest stretches of undeveloped coastline -> need to be protected from development, public access may be increased where appropriate
National Trails or Long-Distance Footpaths
- designated by Natural England
- establish public rights of way through landscape of great scenic value
- created by linking footpaths, bridleways and minor roads to produce routes for walkers/cyclists/horse riders
DEFRA
- Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
- agri-environmental schemes, eg. ESS (Environmental Stewardship Scheme)
- some aspects maintain historically important features of landscapes, eg. dry stone walls
- others protect wildlife but also affect the appearance of the landscape, eg. hedgerows
Local Authorities
Country parks
- areas of land, usually in/near urban centres, intended to provide informal recreational opportuinites for the public
- many are abandoned/redeveloped industrial sites, or have others uses such as plantations, reservoirs
Urban Greenspace
- in urban areas/urban parks
- provided for people that rarely see the countryside
Non-Governmental Organisations
The National Trust
- protect threatened coastline, countryside and buildings
- protects over 1130km of coastline
- 250000 hectares of countyside
- habitats managed/created for wildlife -> traditional techniques -> organic farming
- enourage use of public transport
Land-use conflicts
Major causes:
- urban expansion - increased population -> increased housing demand
- where possible, brownfield sites used
- many houses are on urban green spaces or where single buildings are replaced with several
- increased overcrowding and congestion -> reduced quality of life
- alternatives - build on greenfield sites (eg. farmland) around the urban area, or in new towns
- transport developments
- road schemes - road usage has increased
- congestion caused has lead to many schemes to expand existing roads/build new ones
- proposed/enlarged airports - growth in air travel
- usually near urban areas
- results in loss of farmland, natural habitats, rural communities
- noise and congestion problems
- port developments - trade has increased, carried by sea
- ports in sheltered locations -> estuaries -> destruction of sensitive habitats
- road schemes - road usage has increased
- mining/quarrrying
- minerals only extracted when found in large deposits
- often extracted in lowland areas where farmland is more fertile and population density is high
- harnessing energy
- windfarms
- windiest places often most scenically attractive -> eg. coastal areas
- people think windfarm spoil view
- noise/sunlight reflected from blades can be a problem for locals
- habitat loss caused by construction
- rotating blades can kill birds
- windfarms
- HEP (hydroelectric power)
- often located in scenically beautiful areas - uplands
- tidal barrages
- impacts sensitive estuary habitats -> due to changes in water level, currents, turbidity
All of these schemes have impacts, but without alternative energy methods, using fossil fuels could potentially be more damaging.
Recreation/Tourism
- increased visitors
- damage by congestion, trampling, facility provision (carparks etc.)
- activites of visitors may conflict
Waste Disposal
- landfill sites take up land, release methane
- incinerators are unpopular with locals
- recycling requires public cooperation
Resolving Land-Use Conflicts
- Planning Controls
- permission needs to be granted
- planning application made to local planning authority
- if proposal is controversial/large -> public enquiry is held
- all interested groups have the opportunity to present their cases to an independent inspector
- the inspector compiles a report
- submitted to the Secretary of State
- usually accepts inspector's recommendation, but can overrule if there is a greater national priority
- Areas with strict planning controls
- National Parks
- virtually no urban developments permitted -> unless essential/very desirable for local community
- new housing restricted to needs of local community
- buildings must be appropriate -> local materials, traditional designs
- National Parks
- Green belts
- prevent urban sprawl
- administered by DEFRA
- planning permission not usually granted within green belt unless refusing it would cause more problems -> eg. not widening a road - greater congestion
- AIMS
- protecting surrounding countryside from further invasion
- stop neighbouring urban areas merging into one huge urban area
- reduce congestion/loss of character
- encourage urban regeneration of derelict brownfield sites within the urban area -> may have been abandoned as it is cheaper to develop into surrounding countryside
- PROBLEMS
- shortage of development -> land prices increase -> other developments more expensive -> disadvantage those on lower incomes
- shortage of land for building -> encourages development of green spaces with in central area -> increases population density/congestion
- new developments may 'leapfrog' green belt -> grow into new towns -> increases travel across green belt -> people may work inside green belt but live outside of it
- Green wedges
- same purposes as above
- provide undeveloped areas of land in between where development is permitted
- restricts new urban growth, but keeps it in contact with existing urban areas
- provides green corridors linking surrounding countryside with central urban area
- Space Zoning
- allocating different parts of an area to activites that would conflict if they occured in the same place
- some areas are sensitive to visitor pressure -> trampling, disturbance
- Time zoning
- allocating different time periods to activites that would conflict if they took place at the same time
Assessment of Environmental Impacts
- Leopold Matrix
- compares all overall impacts of a proposal
- by considering each aspect seperately and assessing the severity of impact caused
- combined to produce assessment of overall impact
- physical/biological/social aspects looked at, given a score /10 depending on the magnitude of the impact
- prevents too much importance being put on one effect, when many medium impacts could be worse
- compares all overall impacts of a proposal
- Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA)
- must be followed for major developments before they are granted development consent
- ensures possible environmental impacts are considered
- includes possible modifications of alternatives that would reduce its impact
- Main stages are:
- description of proposal
- description of environment -> populations, animals, plants, air, soik, water, humans, landscape, cultural heritage
- description of impacts -> often involves use of a Leopold Matrix (see above)
- modifications that would reduce environmental impacts
- possible alternatives
- non-technical summary
- summary must be published and must be understood by public
- Cost-Benefit Analysis
- financial value given to all components
- financial benefits/costs
- eg. factors that could be include in a Cost-Benefit Analysis for a proposed mine includes:
- Costs:
- land/labour/material for access roads
- costs of buying land for mine
- labour/machinery/fuel for mine operations
- lost income from tourists/visitors
- reduced values of housing nearby
- Benefits
- increased local employment
- improved transport access for industries using roads that were built
- future benefits -> mine possibly developed into a country park etc.
- Costs:
- Difficult to give a financial value to quality of life, people affected, wildlife affected etc.
- When analysis is complete, costs subtracted from benefits -> if costs too high then the proposal may not go ahead
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