That little old thing called climate change

[chesters1]

I think you're making the very common (no pun intended) mistake of confusing conservation and preservation. Agreed, left to itself, the common would eventually return to forest, but most people prefer to see a common there rather than a forest. Conservation doesn't mean leaving things to the "balance of nature".

 

What the conservation bodies are trying to do (and I'm not claiming that they never make mistakes) is to try to compensate in part for the loss of biodiversity that has resulted from intensive human activity over the centuries.

 

Mr Motorola's comment "Whats that age old saying.................."Don't mess with nature"" just made my jaw drop. It's a bit late for that - it's already been thoroughly messed with.

if you google earth the area those "rare" commons are very numerous ,interfering with nature is just that and to use the excuse its for preserving "potential" wildlife is a tad silly when you oust the wildlife already there!

we already have nightjars ,nightingales ,dartford warblers ,sand lizards and natterjack toads living happily all around us just what are these people trying to preserve if they blunder about uprooting the countryside because it doesent equate to their idea of natural fauna and flora for the area.

had it been the last bit of heathland it would be ok but we have thousands of acres of the stuff around here and the best place to spot the rare stuff is out on the ranges where these fools dont tear things up "improving" it

how deforesting hundreds of acres full of wildlife and leave a sea of silent stumps is helping the wildlife i havent a clue and its not worth asking the wildlife its all gone elsewhere.Had they left the pines to naurally die then they would have replaced the minerals and matter back in the soil ,carting them away on huge lorries then expecting plants to spring up in very poor soil made poorer by all the minerals taken up by the pines now gone to a paper mill is high expectations! the hillside is already washing away down to pure sand so it might attract flies if nothing else.

 

the country was almost forest free in the bronze age anyway so modern mass pine planting although not good to look at or much use to wildlife locks more carbon up than if it were fields.

even those hedge rows that we "rip" up are modern the only true ancient hedge rows are boundary ones useually with a path or sunken track between them ,before the enclosure act hedgerows just didnt exist around fields.

 

i had emailed english nature and a couple of other local "wildlife" so called protecters when i realised a new gas main came past the end of the garden where sand lizards and natterjack toads lived ,did they care ? not a fig ,did the contractors divert around the area i signposted as containing those beasties ,nope my signs were torn down and the area turned into a road for the farmer once the gas main went in.

 

theres "protection" when it means you get land cheap or for nothing then kick the walkers and horses out and "protecting" if it doesent get any land or grants then their not interested and those that they profess to protect can go extinct instead.

infact the fewer rare species there are the more land and money they get to "protect" it

Edited June 6, 2007 by chesters1

[DavyR]

If the RSPB have really messed up as badly as you suggest, then I think they ought to be told. It sounds as though they might have drafted in "experts" from outside the area, but from what I know of the RSPB (a few mates of mine are members) they're generally pretty clued-in and rely heavily upon local knowledge. It would be interesting to hear an opinion from your local RSPB group (there's bound to be one).

[chesters1]

If the RSPB have really messed up as badly as you suggest, then I think they ought to be told. It sounds as though they might have drafted in "experts" from outside the area, but from what I know of the RSPB (a few mates of mine are members) they're generally pretty clued-in and rely heavily upon local knowledge. It would be interesting to hear an opinion from your local RSPB group (there's bound to be one).

its been frontpage local paper for months ,the RSPB appologised "it was a mistake" ,no one sacked ,the land wasent taken from them and they are still determined to get rid of the footpaths and bridleway.

they now want to fence off frensham common and put cows in ,something thats never been done in known history ,ofcourse to keep the cows in those nasty horses must be kept out.how cows blundering through undergrowth is better to horses on bridle path protects wildlife i havent a clue unless they are trained cows that only go on bridlepaths.

had the heathland been any good for cattle they would no longer be heathland having been converted hundreds of years ago

had the walkers and horses disturbed the wildlife then there wouldnt have been any to displace once they deforested it

Edited June 6, 2007 by chesters1

[Leon Roskilly]

Australia faces electricity black-outs next 'Summer' due to drought knocking our hydro-electric generation

 

 

Did I say something about a drought?

 

http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/nin...1089317174.html

 

eek!

[Ken Davison South Wales]

Did I say something about a drought?

 

http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/nin...1089317174.html

 

eek!

 

Trouble is some rain will top up the dams but with hard dry ground the rest will just run off, much better to have longer periods of steady rain, no damage and it will soak in.

 

Used to get this type of thing in the middle east up to six inches in an hour causing large flash floods killing people and live stock, and when you go out to look after you hardly know its' happened, a few water scars in the wadis, bent trees and that's your lot.

[Leon Roskilly]

Trouble is some rain will top up the dams but with hard dry ground the rest will just run off, much better to have longer periods of steady rain, no damage and it will soak in.

 

Used to get this type of thing in the middle east up to six inches in an hour causing large flash floods killing people and live stock, and when you go out to look after you hardly know its' happened, a few water scars in the wadis, bent trees and that's your lot.

 

 

Yep, we had it when I lived in Cairns.

 

Heavy rains smashed the farmers' dams, robbing them of stored water.

 

Loose and valuable topsoil that could hold moisture was scoured away.

 

Just made it worse, not better

[Newt]

I dunno about overall climate change but the temp outside my house right now is over 36º and we don't usually see it that high until late July and into August & early September. Whew!!!! Very warmish.

[captain cojones]

we have been told it will not drop below 22c here tonight..........bummer as im off into the mountains at 06.30 mañana.

[Newt]

Same here. 21/22º for the low. Jan & I are fishing tomorrow and maybe Sunday but it will be on the lake by daylight and off before noon.

[Ken Davison South Wales]

Got a 12hr session of Milford Haven Sunday and the weather is spot on, calm weather groups the fish up into large shoals, should be some good sport.

 

Got the sun hat and cream ready and taking a good stock of cold water.