In direct response to the front page story carried by the Isle of Wight County Press on Friday, “EU putting birds before people” and the Daily Mail, “Eurocrats forced couple off farm they wanted to give to their sons – so it could be flooded for wildfowl: Landowner says EU put ‘rights of birds above humans'”, the RSPB share their take on the story. In their own words, Ed
In December 2012 the Environment Agency (EA) contacted neighbours and the RSPB (which owns much of the Brading Marshes Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) to inform them it had acquired the remaining small part of Harbour Farm in Brading Marshes and would be looking to implement its Water Level Management Plan in order to benefit the site’s nationally and internationally important wildlife.
The Environment Agency has stated that it offered to buy the land that floods regularly at Harbour Farm on Brading Marshes with full agreement of the landowners, who were paid the fair market price. As a Government body, the Environment Agency has a responsibility to work with landowners to help safeguard some of our most important and threatened wildlife.
No indication Col. Hicks was unhappy
Over the last year there had been no correspondence between Colonel Hicks and the RSPB to suggest that they were unhappy, despite the fact that we have been in contact with the family over mutually beneficial options of working together in the future.
The RSPB has had a nature reserve at Brading Marshes since 2001. As a conservation charity and a landowner, we’ve been trying to play our part over the last 10 years in implementing the EA’s Water Level Management Plan for this SSSI.
However, during this period, to our sadness, much of the site had become unfavourable for some of the wildlife it was nationally and internationally recognised for, primarily due to difficulties with implementing this water level management plan.
Previously an advocate
In the past, Colonel Hicks has been an advocate for raised water levels to restore the marsh in support of his wildfowl shooting.
After having been involved in successful trials of the proposed water levels in the late 2000s, and the use of Environmental Stewardship Scheme moneys to assist, the Hicks family believed that they were unable to participate further in delivering favourable condition of this nationally and internationally important site.
There were several options available to secure the management necessary for restoring the SSSI to favourable condition, including additional works funded by Natural England and the Environment Agency, the use of the statutory powers available to Natural England, or a negotiated acquisition by the Environment Agency.
Col. Hicks offered to sell land
On several occasions over the last decade, Colonel Hicks has approached the RSPB about the possibility of selling the remaining land at Harbour Farm as an option to secure the management of its wetlands.
As recently as 2010 he indicated to RSPB that he intended to put the land on the market and that he had already sold the farmhouse, cottage and gardens to one of his sons.
Suitable water level management vital
We have always maintained that whilst we had interests in the wetland areas, we could also work together to deliver other options to help with securing suitable water level management and that they should be considered first.
The site’s protection by UK and European Law as part of the Solent and Southampton Water SPA, was also an important consideration in the Eastern Yar Flood and Erosion Strategy which identified the need to protect the freshwater habitats and lagoons from tidal flooding by continuing to maintain and sustain the existing Embankment Road sea defences and therefore also protected Harbour Farm from flooding from the sea.
Image: Mr T in DC under CC BY 2.0
