United Utilities' plans to stop shooting on their land a disaster for wildlife and the rural economy

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United Utilities last week announced to their tenants that they would not be renewing shooting leases on its land when they come up for renewal. The alleged reasoning was “to ensure the best possible outcomes for water quality”. 

United Utilities are the biggest corporate landowner in England and their landholdings encompass the Forest of Bowland, the Goyt Valley, Longdendale Valley, and the West Pennines. Last year, United Utilities were named by the Environment Agency as England’s worst polluting water company, and as a result they have seen protests from green campaigners. 

The NGO Regional Officers have been in close contact with gamekeepers and shooting tenants who will be affected by this decision since they first got wind of it last week, and are helping them to make United Utilities aware of what a disastrous and short-sighted decision has been made.  

In many cases, keepers and shoot managers have worked closely with United Utilities staff on the ground, working on conservation projects with them and liaising closely on a regular basis. Many of them did not appear to have had prior warning of this decisions, which appears to have been made from head-office, rather than by talking to the people on the ground. 

We have arranged a meeting early next week with the shoots that this decision will affect, as well as neighbouring estates and local businesses, so we can coordinate a plan around our next steps.

The NGO believe that the decision from United Utilities is an extremely short-sighted move which we suspect has been made on a whim in order to try and improve their environmental image.  

“Putting a stop to shooting and the associated land management on the United Utilities-owned uplands will in fact be a disaster for the wildlife, biodiversity and habitats of the UU’s moorlands”, explained John Clarke, Northern Development Officer for the NGO.

“Many keepers and other rural workers will lose their jobs, and the rural economy and community more widely will suffer enormously. Local businesses which depend on shooting for much of their income will struggle financially, and we wonder whether United Utilities have taken any of these things into account when making this decision?”