Farmers to fight mudflat plans

FARMERS have vowed to continue their fight against plans to allow large parts of Holderness to be claimed by the sea.

National Farmers' Union (NFU) chiefs attended a meeting in Patrington to see first-hand the impact Environment Agency and Natural England plans would have on farmland.

The NFU claims environmental issues have changed and, with world food shortages, ensuring sustainable food sources has become a priority.

Holderness is known as the bread basket of Yorkshire and is thought to be one of the best wheat-producing areas in the country.

But the agency wants to allow the sea to run further inland to create mudflats for birds.

NFU's group secretary for Holderness, Ed Davey, said: “A lot of the agency's polices go back eight years, but things have moved on dramatically in that time.

“We are trying to get them to reconsider the issues. We are contesting everything the agency is putting forward. We now feel priorities have changed enough to do so.

“Sunk Island is one of the highest wheat-producing areas in the country and losing it would have a huge impact on local food production.”

By inviting NFU vice president Paul Temple and water policy adviser Anna Hall to the area, Mr Davey hopes the issues will be addressed higher up in Government.

He said: “The meeting gave local members the opportunity to put their concerns across and give Mr Temple and Ms Hall the chance to see it all first hand.

“We are still at the fact-finding stage and will receive a report in July from Dutch consultants that will be presented to the Government, but we need to get more information from Government departments before we can put our case forward.”

The visit left an impression on Mr Temple. He said: “There is a bit of anger and a lot of frustration that farmers with knowledge and experience of the area aren't being listened to.

“This land should be protected because of its long-term production value.”

Both the agency and Natural England have defended plans to let the sea in.

The Environment Agency's Humber strategy manager Philip Winn said: “The agency must justify the way it spends public money on flood defences based on a range of social and economic factors, including the number of properties and businesses that will be protected.

“As climate change bites and sea levels rise, we anticipate it will be unsustainable to continue maintaining some defences on the Humber Estuary, which protect flood plains that are very sparsely populated.”