Incisive and no holds barred analysis and criticism by @NaturalEngland of media commentary on the #SaddleworthMoorFire publications.naturalengland.org.uk/file/628634757… #HenHarrierDay Thread 👇 
I was amazed at the time when some folks with vested interests tried to blame management on an RSPB reserve for a major wildfire event that started on a grouse moor, and continue to be shocked that this has continued o this day
https://twitter.com/Alexander_Lees/status/1390410771914428421
To make this very clear, this major wildlife started on a driven grouse moor and ended when it reached restored moorland which was wet enough to stop its progress, and with the help of all those fighting it - gamekeepers, RSPB staff, fire fighters etc.
h/t to @taspinallphotos for pointing me in the direction of the NE report which blows through some of the broader nonsense that has become accepted wisdom in some quarters and the specific #FakeNews surrounding the fires at Stalybridge (spoiler it wasn't Saddleworth).
Climate Change will likely make our uplands more fire prone, we need to mitigate ignition risk and make the moors as resilient as possible. Locally, restoration by grip blocking is happening on land used for DGS and managed by NGOs, utilities etc which is great.
I'm happy to pay for this management through my taxes so I don't have to be advised to keep my windows closed. And yes, it isn't only DGS moors that can end up hosting major wildfires - pic from my house here: bbc.co.uk/news/uk-englan…
The hegemonic dominance of single land-uses in our uplands is one of our biggest problems, be it forestry in Dumfries & Galloway, intensive sheep grazing in the Lake District or DGS on the North York Moors, all of which can create species poor homogeneous upland landscapes.
Many DGS moors do host threatened wildlife, but others remain hotbeds of illegal wildlife persecution and provide ecosystem disservices. The onus isn't on 'antis' to provide alternatives, it is on practitioners to prove DGS is fit for the challenges of the 21st century by reform.
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