Brief History of the Troubles (part one)

This is the text of a short newsletter left in plastic wallets at certain points on Blacka Moor usually near points of access.

Background notes about Blacka Moor

Unlike other local spaces, Blacka was given to the people of Sheffield for recreation and as a public open space by Alderman Graves in 1933.
It was managed without farm animals and the paths were maintained.
In 1983 council officers put sheep on the land. There was a public protest and petition which succeeded in getting the sheep withdrawn
In the 1990’s council officers planned with officers of English Nature in Bakewell to have the land added to the other nearby sites of Special Scientific Interest.
This was not discussed with the people, with councillors or with those who walk on Blacka Moor.
In 1999 the land was proposed as an SSSI. Officers responded welcoming this without consulting the public or councillors.
The Graves Covenant states that the land is to be a public pleasure ground and public open space. Council officers kept this document to themselves and resisted calls to have it made available.
Council officers then persuaded the council to declare the site a Nature Reserve in 2001 and gave it to Sheffield Wildlife Trust.
Sheffield Wildlife Trust’s management plan crafted with the help of English Nature states that they will be grazing the land with cattle. This is contrary to the wishes of local users of Blacka who wish it to be left as it is or with manual removal of unwanted trees. A new petition in 2005 collected 761 signatures. This has been ignored.

I will return to this subject with further details about what has been going on in the following days.