Ploughing a New Furrow: A Blueprint for Wildlife Friendly Farming

Ploughing a New Furrow examines the devastating impact of intensive crop growing on farmland wildlife, including a 54% decline in common farmland birds since 1970 and a 40% decline in farmland invertebrates in a few decades. The book argues that the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has encouraged farmers to destroy wildlife habitat and damage large tracts of our uplands, and proposes policy changes and other measures to make Britain's farms wildlife-rich once more.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 230 pages
Publication date: 29 June 2018
Publisher: Whittles Publishing

Intensive crop cultivation, including the use of pesticides, hedge trimming, heathland plowing, and marsh draining, has caused a significant decline in farmland wildlife. The overgrazing of sheep on our moors, hills, and mountains has resulted in a loss of diverse upland plants, invertebrates, and birds, and the conversion of land to closely grazed turf, which exacerbates the risk of catastrophic downstream floods during heavy rainfall. Since 1970, the population of common farmland birds has plummeted by 54%, while farmland invertebrates have experienced a 40% decline in just a few decades. Shockingly, since the 1930s, a staggering 97% of our once-flower-rich meadows have been lost.

Ploughing a New Furrow delves into these alarming statistics and explores the unprecedented opportunity presented by Brexit for wildlife to be nurtured alongside food production, reversing the enormous plant and animal losses our farmland has endured. The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), with its financial support, has incentivized farmers to destroy vast areas of wildlife habitat in Britain's lowlands and cause significant damage to large tracts of our uplands, depleting Britain's farmed land of much of its wildlife. As farm policy responsibility is set to be returned to the UK, these significant losses can be reversed, and Britain's farms can be transformed into wildlife-rich habitats once again.

This book is largely based on conversations with farmers and on the achievements and experiences of some farmers who have successfully utilized agri-environment payments to restore lost habitats and manage their remaining wildlife more sensitively. The author makes a compelling case for reducing or capping subsidies, supporting organic and other more sustainable forms of agriculture, and conserving soils and the diverse life forms they harbor. He proposes a series of policy changes and other measures to achieve these goals.

The decline in farmland wildlife is a pressing concern that requires urgent action. By implementing these proposed policy changes and promoting sustainable agricultural practices, we can help reverse the damage done to our ecosystems and restore the beauty and biodiversity of our countryside. Let us work together to create a future where farmers and wildlife can thrive in harmony.

Weight: 590g
Dimension: 171 x 239 x 15 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781849953283