To Discuss or Not:

We are not prepared to engage in specific online or email discussions about the sense of the project. You either like the idea or you do not. Feedback, in order to improve this site or the project, is of course welcome. Please send an email with your constructive ideas.

Obviously Naturepark UK follows two interwoven goals since firstly the profitable use of land, whilst aiming for a maintenance of biodiversity, would then secondly lead to the reintroduction of formerly native to Britain species as an increased biodiversity. Profits will have to be the driving force in order to guarantee sustainability. Arguments for the need for profitable sub-companies have already been presented on this site under "The NPUK Concept". 

We have already received rather cautious feedback from members of the farming community, partially born out of weariness of yet another idea which might lead to patronisation or straight away the assumption "They want wolves in Britain". Since most farming activities are subsidised the farming community must accept that the public hand, as commissioner of farming services via subsidies, is rightfully so in a position to demand changes in working practices as part of the product they commission. Hence a scheme that explores possibilities of profitable diversification of land use should indeed be attractive to farmers and land owners since it opens a path to escape patronisation from commissioning bodies whilst equally promoting conservation.

The Agroforestry Biodiversity Viability Study would be the cornerstone of all Naturepark UK activities and any further developments with regards to species re-introduction will need to be guided by the size of the project area and the possibility to integrate the new residents profitably.

With respect to the reintroduction of wolves or indeed any formerly native to Britain animal or plant species: Any project supported by Naturepark UK must also fulfil the criterion of profitability, since this, in addition to maintaining or even furthering biodiversity, is central to the whole Naturepark UK concept.

Plenty an argument for and against, especially the reintroduction of potentially dangerous species, can be found on the web, e.g. via Wild about Britain, Wisconsin wolf and wildlife management plan,  Walk Highlands, The Ramblers, grough and many other web sites. The most common example concerning wolves is Mr. Paul Lister with his Alladale project. A nice train of thoughts can be found here under the key words “Rewilding in Britain”.

The Carpathian Large Carnivore Project produced enough evidence that wolves and bears, even when coming to town, cannot be seen as a noteworthy threat to humans, and the protection of life stock from carnivore activity is more a question of management than of possibility. Central to Mr. Lister’s plans at Alladale is the fact that currently a surplus of deer has to be to be culled regularly due to a lack of natural predators and that hence sufficient prey for large carnivores is available with certainty.

Non believers should check with the Deer Commission for Scotland  or the British Deer Society; deer overpopulation as food for bears and wolvers is hardly a problem. More detailed information is available in this report: Wolf reintroduction to Scotland.

Why is it that Germany is celebrating the return of wolves to her lands and successfully reintroducing wisent into the wild in 2010 whilst here in Britain similar plans for secured enclosures are deemed inappropriate and dangerous? How is it that in Germany wild boar is almost a pest in the forests, often, but wrongly so, fed by walkers and visitors, whilst a poor beast showing beside a primary school here in Britain gets shot for being considered a threat to staff and children?

Why are there so many hypocrites who happily travel to an African game park to marvel at living nature whilst fighting tooth and nail against any such project on their door step?

Lord Bath of Longleat knows only too well how scaremongering can produce hassle for no reason at all. When he first voiced his plans for a safari park at Longleat there was a near public outcry from scaremongers who saw the local population already savaged by marauding lions.

We are certain all the “dangerous animal” critics ensure that their children never walk to town, never cross a road and certainly never travel in a car.

Even if the initial project area does not include formerly extinct species, the concept of profitable use of natural resources whilst maintaining or even furthering species diversity stands firmly at the centre of the Naturepark UK vision.