NSA issues wildfire warning
The devastating scenes of wildfires raging in the UK countryside could become a common occurrence if plans for “re-wilding” of the countryside saw grazing livestock removed from hills and uplands.
The National Sheep Association (NSSA) yesterday warned that the removal of sheep and cattle which control vegetation and create natural fire-breaks would make out-of-control fires more common – especially when combined with other expected risk factors such as climate change and weather patterns.
NSA chief executive Phil Stocker said wildfires were becoming more common across the UK – in part due to a loss of grazing animals and an increase in high volumes of dry vegetation which acted as tinder:
“The grazed nature of most of our uplands has, in the past, protected us from out-of-control fires, meaning that when fires occur as they inevitably will, they are short lived and relatively easy to get under control,” he said.
“This is a practical example of how sheep farming has an integral relationship with our planet and connects our landscape, our people and our wildlife and environment through natural and traditional land management whilst also producing food and fibre from plants and regions that would not otherwise feed and clothe us.”
Stocker stated that the NSA was not aiming to win political gain from a “clearly distressing and damaging event” but added that the organisation did feel the need to point out that moves to re-wild upland areas would put far more and far larger areas at risks.