Review of the Lie of the Land by Guy Shrubsole

This book provides vital reading for government ministers, activists and anyone who cares about the future of the planet. Guy Shrubsole reveals how the limited number of people who own land in the UK have overseen the trashing of this asset under the guise of being good stewards. There are telling statistics, such as that just 5% of the land is taken for private homes and gardens. This figure rises to 8.8% if the definition is extended to all land built on. A further 73% is farmland and 10% forestry. Agriculture contributes 11%. of UK carbon emissions. Shrubsole asserts that the "biggest drivers of biodiversity loss are agriculture, forestry and shooting." There is then a comprehensive demolition of the private landowners claims to be good stewards of the land. Shrubsole chronicles the damage done to peat on the uplands by grouse shoots. Huge amounts of CO2 have been released through mismanagement, involving the draining and burning of the peat heavy areas. All, to satisfy the needs of game birds, that are ultimately shot. There are amazing statistics, such as that 50 million pheasants are released to be shot each year by the landowners - more than the total breeding biomass of the entire UK wild bird population. The author charts the draining of the Fens in Cambridgeshire, initially by 13 landowning venture capitalists, converting it from wetlands to farming land. There has been a subsequent huge release of CO2. Then there was the destructive role of individuals like Lord Bedford, who in the 19th century, brought in invasive damaging species like the grey squirrel. Shrubsole claims that the funds given to private landowners (£9.2 billion in the last 30 years), in the name of stewardship, to look after and improve the land, has been largely wasted. It would be better spent on buying the land outright and bringing it into the public estate. Even the national parks are dominated by privately owned farmland. And matters have got worse over the past 14 years, with cuts to public sector operators and regulators. This book though is not all doom and gloom but a vision of what can be, as well as a call to action. Basically, Shrubsole wants to take the land back from the private sphere to the public. He draws inspiration from Scotland, where the Land Reform Act enshrines the community right to buy. So, when land becomes available, community bodies can register an interest. They, then have eight months to raise the funds but can also draw on a Community Fund. A similar but more diluted form of the community right to buy exists in England under the Localism Act. But here, there is just six months to raise the funds and community groups can be gazumped. A Community Ownership Fund was established in 2021. In Scotland, the community ownership process has seen 500,000 acres (2.6%) of the land come under public ownership. Shrubsole looks in detail at the transformation in nature as a result of the public buy out at Langholm Moor in Scotland. Shrubsole concludes with a 10 point plan of action. The plan includes taking back control of the peat soils of the uplands, presently emitting 3.4 million tonnes of CO2 annually. This includes banning moorland burning and outlawing driven grouse shooting. Shrubsole believes rewilding the uplands would substantially cut CO2 emissions and make the government target of protecting 30% if the land for nature by 2030 attainable. There are also calls for a strong community right to buy in England, using public money to buy land for nature, make polluting landowners pay, via a carbon land tax, stopping the mass pheasant releases and making large landowners (1000 acres plus) accountable for what they are doing with the land for nature. "The public needs to be able to assert that some parts of our land - our most important carbon stores, our most precious ecosystems-have to be managed for the common good, rather than trashed for private gain, " writes Shrubsole. Guy Shrubsole has come up with a most important book at a crucial time in the present biodiversity and climate crisis. He highlights how the domination of the land by a small number of private interests has helped further that crisis. His recommendations offer a way forward and hope for the future. But only if the public interest finally triumphs over private greed. Published by William Collins - £22

Waste not

The amount of litter just dumped around Wanstead does not seem to ever decrease. On a recent litter pick, it took very little time to fill a bag with all sorts of discarded waste - cans, plastic bottles, cups, paper and fag ends. There seems no end to it, much of it thrown out of car windows or just casually dropped by pedestrians. Why do human beings have so little regard for the environment in which they live? The amount of rubbish taken out of Wanstead is incredible. There are the efforts of volunteer litter pickers and the professional street cleaners. Many will have seen the bags mount up, waiting to be picked up on the high street. Then there are the bins on George and Christchurch Greens that are emptied regularly by Vision staff. The council brought in wheelie bins a few years ago. This was to encourage less waste and more recycling. It has worked to a degree but the levels of actual household waste created show little sign of reducing It seems there is a total disconnect between the climate crisis going on around us and people's individual lives The consumer society of buy, use and throw away has brought us to the brink of environmental disaster. The land and oceans are filling up with plastics and other waste products. We are literally choking on our own rubbish. In order to have any chance of surviving, there needs to be a total change of mindset. We all need to live more simply on the earth, tread more gently and have a greater sense of care for the consequences of our actions. In the case of waste this means creating less. Why can people not buy what they are going to eat, rather than throw so much away? Food waste is a huge problem in our society. Think a little more holistically, the problem does not end when the waste is taken away from your home. Another huge amount of waste is created by building work. Extensions, rebuilds and new kitchens create massive amounts of waste. Yes, good contractors ensure this waste is disposed of in a responsible manner but it still needs dealing with. Do people need to rip a house or flat apart, as soon as they move into the place. It is incredible to behold practically new kitchens finishing up in skips outside houses. Just because people have the money and can do something doesn't make it the right thing to do. The time has come to think more holistically about what we do. Think of the community, the consequences of the way we live. We all need to live more simply and sustainably on this earth or in time we will destroy the very basis of life. *A councillor led monthly litter pick takes place at 10am on the third Saturday of each month. Starting point is Woodbine Place by the buses - equipment provided. Next session is on 16th November