A Mega Rip-Off

The pasture land on Blacka referred to in a recent post is as artificial as the grouse moors yet government money is paid to keep it free of trees by grazing it with sheep and cattle. So how does this square with Natural England's position of wanting 25% upland tree cover - currently only about 10% ? Various grants are paid through Single Farm Payment by the Rural Payments Agency and also stewardship schemes. Anyone trying to get to the bottom of the way money is passed around by public bodies to get desired results that are suddenly found to be not quite so desirable is likely pretty quickly to become seriously and giddily confused. The muddle and botching of the administration of this scheme grow worse as more is revealed. Why do they try to stop trees growing? Apparently because the SSSI designation mentions its importance for 'upland breeding birds'. Yet it's never been 'important' for these birds. But, they say, if it's managed properly it would be. Isn't that true of many places ? So why not let nature decide ? All comes from a decision taken ten years ago to tack Blacka onto a list of numerous other sites which were becoming SSSIs. Some of them may have have been deemed important for these reasons with rather more justification so Blacka gets the label by association. This allows various groups and individuals to claim grants and subsidies that the public can hardly afford in order to manage the land according to criteria of dubious relevance.