Blogs
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in:
GWCT News Blog
under:
Farming
, Allerton Project
, Policy
Whilst farming policy has looked to embrace a more sustainable, practical future, the approach to wildlife conservation, as demonstrated by the latest pronouncements from Defra, seems to be ‘stuck in the mud’.
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in:
GWCT News Blog
under:
Allerton Project
, Farming
, Policy
Seems a simple enough question, but when it comes to public policy it is more difficult. The current focus on climate change centres predominantly around carbon, with biodiversity rendered a supporting role through nature-based solutions. This raises the question: is biodiversity a good in its own right, or is it a supporting service that underpins delivery of a broad range of ecosystem services?
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in:
GWCT News Blog
under:
Farming
, Farmland Ecology
, Policy
The use of pesticides is hotly debated, but arguments around it are often absolute and lack nuance. The government derogation for farmers to use the neonicotinoid thiamethoxam on sugar beet this year (dependent on evidence of potentially yield threatening levels of pests) created lots of headlines, plenty of outrage and, at the time of writing, 50,597 signatures to reverse the decision.
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in:
GWCT News Blog
under:
Farming
, Policy
On the face of it, we should welcome the research published in Science that improved crop performance can be achieved in hard soils through gene modification. Whilst soil compaction does restrict crop yields, the solution is more complex than to just adapt plant genetics. Soil health is in decline generally and compacted soils cause a number of environmental problems too.
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in:
GWCT News Blog
under:
Farming
, GWCT Partners
Farmer Time is an ongoing connection, where the farmer and their class link up for fortnightly video calls looking at what is happening on the farm and how it relates to the school curriculum.
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in:
GWCT News Blog
under:
Farming
, Policy
The response of some conservation NGOs to the news that Defra has given emergency authorisation of a neonicotinoid seed treatment for sugar beet in 2021 has been scare-mongering and emotive. In our view Defra’s decision is proportionate – and here is why.
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in:
GWCT News Blog
under:
Farming
“We want to support the choices that farmers and land managers take on their holdings,” writes George Eustice in the foreword of Defra’s Agricultural Transition Plan, launched on 30 November. For farmers working under the trappings of the Common Agricultural Policy, this will provide a welcome sense of relief. In fact, much of the 66-page report will.
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in:
GWCT News Blog
under:
Farming
Watch farmer Graham Denny discussing the important conservation work farmers do with Jimmy Doherty on the Channel 4 series Jimmy's Big Bee Rescue.
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in:
Auchnerran Blog
under:
Farming
, GWCT Scotland
Dr David Parish talks us through what's been happening at the Game & Wildlife Scottish Demonstration Farm at Auchnerran, on the publication of its first annual report.
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