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Cornwall Writers : genius loci
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FALSE TRAIL I often imagine Cornwall’s miles of coast-path in the winter when hardly anyone ventures to walk there. Few places are so rich in undisturbed wildlife, from the small mammals and snakes in the undergrowth to the colonies of seabirds. In the summer season when their spectacular beauty calls thousands of us out the wildlife undergoes the usual stress that proximity to mankind brings. Most of us mean no harm but few creatures will stand by and watch us pass with confidence, preferring to view us as aggressors from whom they flee in alarm. Occasionally we do silly things like letting our dogs discover nestlings on the ground or setting fire to the undergrowth. In the winter in our absence everything has time to recover and restore itself before the next invasion begins. |
However, if plans by Natural England, concealed in the huge and complex
Marine Bill, come to fruition this precious environment may be subject to
intrusion from which it will not recover. In the name of access the humble coast
path which winds as unobtrusively as possible through a wild landscape will be
getting a makeover. It is proposed to upgrade it from a path to a Trail, and
where possible to level it out, remove natural obstacles and widen it to a
standard width of four metres. You may want to check the date here, but it’s no
April fool. They mean it.
Not content with this improvement they will also be annexing large swathes of
the land on either side of the trail as “Spreading Land”. Behind this Orwellian
description is an extension of the Right to Roam, to take over this formerly
unspoilt land as space for walkers to explore, rest and picnic in. All the land
on the seaward side of the new Trails will be designated as Spreading Land, even
large headlands. Much of the landward side will also be part of the scheme.
The mystery of all this is why anyone thinks it is necessary. The existing
coast path is a wonderful thing, created over centuries by local custom, giving
gorgeous views of the sea and coast and no shortage of places to stop and stare,
even to picnic. The terrain dictates how accessible the path will be, and no
amount of public money will make the steepest or narrowest parts accessible to
all but the fittest walkers. It’s not a problem – people can always find
stretches suitable for their ability. To tempt inexperienced people off the safe
path on the seaward side is downright silly. But above all the result will be to
urbanise a landscape in which we are now only visitors, and to open up not just
a wide and unsightly track but also hundreds of acres of ‘amenity’ land to human
interference, from which any natural creature will flee. For an organisation
called Natural England to promote a scheme which gives humans preference over a
natural environment is beyond crazy.
You have until 26th June to object.
Read more about Michael Sagar Fenton
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