Orchard Network

Although the Habitats Regulations have been around for some time, their power is increasingly being appreciated. Time and time again the same sort of wording comes up in legislation and guidance notes, such that it is a wonder that we have to fight as hard and with such limited success as we do.

Regulation 37: Nature conservation policy in planning contexts:

"…policies in respect of the conservation of the natural beauty and amenity of the land shall be taken to include policies encouraging the management of features of the landscape which are of major importance for wild flora and fauna.

Such features are those which by virtue of their linear and continuous structure (such as rivers with their banks or traditional systems of marking field boundaries) or their function as stepping stones (such as ponds or small woods), are essential for the migration, dispersal and genetic exchange of wild species."

Traditional Orchards fall beautifully into this description and this wording should be used a rallying point.
 

National Links

The Conservation (Natural Habitats, &c.) Regulations 1994