30th January 2020
The Moorland Association responds to the announcement by Natural England of new arrangements for licensing the control of Herring Gulls (HG) and Lesser-Black-Backed Gulls (LBBG). Two species removed from the 2019 General Licences. These arrangements include the introduction of a maximum threshold for the total number of these gulls that they will allow to be […]
29th January 2020
A GROUP of leading rural organisations has issued a new joint declaration as a clear signal of their intent to see the end of raptor persecution. The British Association for Shooting and Conservation (BASC), Countryside Alliance (CA), Moorland Association (MA), National Gamekeepers’ Organisation (NGO) and the Country Land and Business Association (CLA) have outlined a […]
23rd January 2020
The Moorland Association said today that moorland managers are wholly committed to combating climate change and the government should not rush into an outright ban on controlled heather burning over peatland. Following the publication today of the report, Land Use: Policies for a Net Zero UK by the Committee for Climate Change, Amanda Anderson, Director […]
16th January 2020
Dee Ward, Vice-Chair at Scottish Land & Estates, reflects on the future of Scotland’s moorland. Scotland’s purple-clad heather moorland is heading into a new era and uncertain future. The final report of a two-year long review into grouse moor management, commissioned by the Scottish Government, has made a host of recommendations that would result in the […]
9th January 2020
Amanda Anderson, Director of the Moorland Association, responds to the recent wildfires in Australia: The horrific wildfires that are devastating large parts of Australia are extremely tough viewing. Pictures of badly burnt koalas, kangaroos and vast swathes of the countryside and people’s homes and livelihoods ablaze cannot but tug on the heartstrings and it is […]
19th December 2019
The Werritty Review into Grouse Moor Management in Scotland has been published today. Here is the link to the full report and the Scottish Government’s initial response. Below is a joint sector statement from rural organisations responding to the review. GROUSE SHOOTING REVIEW REPORT WILL MEAN ‘SEISMIC’ CHANGE FOR MOORS IN SCOTLAND Rural organisations said today that […]
31st October 2019
A new survey of breeding birds in the Peak District National Park has shown a positive trend in numbers of endangered species. Populations of 16 bird species in the Peak District are up, in contrast to national trends from the UK Government’s State of Nature 2019 report. Out of the 29 species sighted, the numbers […]
28th October 2019
The Moorland Association, which represents moorland owners and managers in England, today urged the RSPB to be ‘fair and factual’ in the review of game shooting it plans to conduct. Responding to the announcement of the review at the RSPB AGM, Amanda Anderson, director of the Moorland Association, said: “There are hundreds of people within […]
7th October 2019
The Moorland Association said today that the final report of the Langholm Moor Demonstration Project (LMDP) published today has highlighted the multiple environmental and conservation benefits provided by grouse moor management. The full LMDP report can be read here The Langholm Moor Demonstration Project was a partnership of Buccleuch, Scottish Natural Heritage, Game & Wildlife […]
29th September 2019
Satellite data from an innovative scheme to help boost England’s Hen Harrier population has shed new light on the activities of the birds at the centre of the initiative. Five Hen Harriers which fledged this summer were fitted with satellite tags as part of a trial of a brood management scheme in which a brood […]
75% of Europe’s remaining upland heather moorland is found in the UK – but this area declined alarmingly over the latter part of the last century. The Moorland Association was set up in 1986 to coordinate the efforts of moorland owners and managers to halt this loss, particularly in England and Wales.
MOORLAND ASSOCIATION STATEMENT ON RSPB STANCE ON GAMEBIRD SHOOTING Mark Cunliffe Lister, chairman of the Moorland Association, said: “The call for licensing of driven grouse shooting and the threat of a possible ban in future is both disproportionate and unnecessary. “Licensing of grouse shooting would add another expensive layer of bureaucracy that would not resolve wildlife crime and environmental issues that are already being […]
Countryside organisations urge Government to back new ‘blueprint’ for future of shooting Leading countryside organisations have today (Friday October 9) urged the Government to support a new blueprint for the shooting sector which aims to deliver a ‘game changing’ benefit for the environment. The guidelines provide the most comprehensive framework to date for the creation, management and restoration of habitat for wildlife. The blueprint has been adopted […]
