NGO Statement on the 2016 State of Nature Report

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The following is the response by the National Gamekeepers’ Organisation to the State of Nature report, which is published today (14 September 2016). The report has been produced by a partnership of more than 50 organisations involved in the conservation of nature in the UK and its Overseas Territories.

A spokesman for the National Gamekeepers’ Organisation said: “The State of Nature 2016 report claims that policy-driven agricultural change is by far the most significant driver of wildlife declines and the loss of nature in recent decades. It goes on to say however that well-planned conservation projects can turn around the fortunes of wildlife, so the NGO is hugely disappointed to see that the widespread and effective conservation management done by gamekeepers in the name of game management receives scant attention.

“It is no secret among knowledgeable conservationists that gamekeeping is uniquely placed to offset the intensive management of much agricultural land. It is able to help wildlife in the farmland environment to a greater extent than almost any other type of land management. In fact, much of the conservation work the report calls to be implemented is routinely carried out by gamekeepers every day of their working lives. The incentive provided by game retains hedgerows, ponds and marginal land. It also ensures that woods are planted and managed with wildlife in mind, some of the areas where the report precisely urges action to be taken.

“We also notice State of Nature hardly dwells on the severe impact that predation can have on wildlife. We feel this is a mistake. It is a serious gap in the authority of the report and shows to us that its authors simply do not understand the finer points of wildlife management. Remember gamekeepers are the original champions of biodiversity, who were successfully employing wildlife conservation long before others followed our lead.

“Sir David Attenborough in his foreword talks of the importance of cooperative working to successful conservation. We feel however that this generosity of partnership is not extended to the keepering community by many of the conservation bodies involved in the report. Whether by accident or design, the positive environmental work being carried out by keepers is missing from this review of wildlife. The report is a lost opportunity to bring all parties together in a common cause to help struggling nature.

“It is in our view a narrow-minded approach and a sad indictment of the way in which many of these organisations go about promoting conservation. It is as if they see wildlife as theirs rather than a resource to be nurtured by all and for all. What is certain is that if gamekeepers ceased to manage the countryside tomorrow, its state of nature would deteriorate further – and rapidly.

“The report takes a sideswipe at grouse management. Heather burning is a complex issue, as much of the latest research shows. But we see the treatment of traditional moorland management in State of Nature as lacking in balance. There is no rounded view of its importance to upland wildlife. We fear casual readers will go away with only half a story. Can this be right in what claims to be a definitive report? We don’t think so.

“Likewise when the report says, ‘the UK population of heather moorland-loving hen harriers is extremely low, and in some areas close to extinction, due to illegal persecution associated with grouse moor management’, it presents to its readership a hypothesis as a hard fact. Of course, where the law is broken it must stop, which the NGO has always been clear on.

“The report, regrettably, does not spotlight the important collaborative work being done to boost harrier numbers, namely the Hen Harrier Joint Recovery Plan, which perhaps should not come as a surprise, given that the RSPB, one of the authors of State of Nature, recently walked away from the project. ”

The report is available to view by clicking here

Notes to Editors

The National Gamekeepers' Organisation represents the gamekeepers of England and Wales. It defends and promotes gamekeeping, gamekeepers and ensures high standards throughout the profession. It was founded in 1997 by a group of gamekeepers who felt that their profession was threatened by public misunderstanding and poor representation. The NGO has around 15,000 members.