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This appalling neglect is intensely worrying.
The National Trust is a full partner in the
HEATH Project (even though their
counterpart in Wales has rejected such
schemes) and, on the coast road under Carn
Galva, the two intend to install cattle grids
extending the width of the road from hedge
to hedge. This will prohibit all passage by
Cattle, and damage caused by hoof marks, around the Men Scryfa. Pictures by Ian Cooke.
horse riders and those who enjoy the
growing pastime of pony-and-trap driving.
will lose out entirely, because Natural intensive, involved the presence of herdsmen, It has now come to light that the National
‘England’ has selected a mere few to and did not require fencing and enclosure. Trust and Natural ‘England’ intend to carve
participate in this new and ill-advised The practice ceased because it was of little out the coast path to a width of 13 feet, their
scheme. Not only that, but the introduction benefit to farming and, had this opinion stated reason being to allow two people to
of cattle – including the likelihood of bulls altered, then farmers would have walk abreast. I’m aware of obesity concerns
into open right–to-roam areas will add a very reintroduced it themselves, without being but…six and a half foot wide people? It is an
real hazard to ramblers, horse-riders and prompted to do so by an external agency. absurdity and a needlessly expensive one.
dog walkers who, for decades beyond Richard Angove, of the National Farmers Natural ‘England’, aware of the rising
recall, have roamed these open moorland Union, is mystified by this turnaround in opposition to their project, has now taken to
areas without any such hindrance or hazard. attitude as one of the requirements of the the shameful but predictable tactic of trying
Add to this the introduction of alien fences, ESA was that no fencing should be to frighten the public. Grazing cattle on the
gates and horrendously noisy cattle-grids introduced to the moor. Now, the very same moor, it claimed recently in the local
and we begin to see what appears to be an people are demanding that it should. newspaper, will prevent moor fires that will
attempt to enclose and impose state control The effect on archaeology will be dire. have people running screaming from their
over open (and privately owned) land. Recently, the Trippet Stones on Bodmin endangered homes. Moor fires happen, and
The intention of this project is to intensively Moor required expensive repair to remedy some of them have been huge. I have never,
graze the moors, changing forever its familiar severe cattle damage and, of course, in half a century, heard of any dwelling being
and hugely varied appearance and habitats, standing stones will be a magnet to cattle consumed by a moor fire. How will cattle
reducing it to a dull area of uniform heathland who need convenient scratching posts. prevent the fires? Perhaps Natural ‘England’
(or that is their plan). This policy will evict the Natural England alleges that ‘historical will train them to line up and mass-urinate
current wild life population and replace it with assessments’ have been prepared by our on the flames to put them out?
another. What is ‘natural’ about that? Natural old friends ‘English’ Heritage – and yet they Readers might like to know that the
England’s argument is that the moor is trying intend to place water troughs in areas of HEATH Project requested (unsuccessfully)
to revert to scrub and woodland, regardless fragile archaeology, such as medieval ridge- to see this article before it went to print.
of the fact that, since traditonal grazing and-furrow, that will be destroyed by such A website, www.savepenwithmoors.com
ceased 150 years ago, this has not concentration of cloven hoof activity within a has been set up to give the facts and invite
happened. The moor has ‘managed’ itself, week. I now have copies of those people to petition and protest against this latest
without human interference, into the assessments and, even on an initial scan, threat to our Cornish heritage. My message to
wonderful and uniquely wild landscape loved I’ve found that the inventories omit major Natural ‘England’, to DEFRA and to the
by millions. Summer grazing, for two or three scheduled monuments, such as the menhir National Trust is this: abandon this ill-advised
months of the year did once take place on near the summit of Watch Croft and the tor and damaging project and, instead, restore the
the Penwith Moors, but this was far less enclosure found in 2002 on Carn Kenidjack. successful and beneficial ESA scheme.
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