You may have seen that there is controversy over what might appear to be a dull technical document issued recently by Natural England (see this story in The Guardian from 21 July). The document is about the idea, an attractive idea, of net gain for wildlife to be achieved through the planning sytem (in England). If you get permission to build say, a supermarket, on a greenfield site, then how can the loss of wildlife value be measured and compensated?
There is some confusion, as usual. over what DEFRA and Natural England are doing, and the implications could be serious, so Wild Justice is keeping an eye on things, along with lots of other concerned parties.
We have written to DEFRA and Natural England today to see whether they will tell us what they think they are doing, and how it fits in with the legal requirements.
Our letter to DEFRA is below and the letter which has gone to Natural England covers the same ground.
The Wild Justice Hen Harrier Day broadcast will occur on Saturday 7 August – click here to register your interest and to receive updates ahead of the event.
