Grassland Management in "Environmentally Sensitive Areas"

A BGS Conference of interest to the farmer involved in the E8As, as well as those concerned in relevant research programmes and in managing and monitoring the schemes.

The conference will discuss policy issues, the scientific basis of the scheme and its results, farmer and landowner participation and perceptions, and the economics of the scheme for the taxpayer and the farmer.

23 September 1997

11.00 Registration

13.50 Meeting opened by Mr Angus Golightly, BGS President

SESSION I Policy Issues
Chairman: Angus Golightly,
Jealotts Hill Research Station

14.00 Environmental Policy in the European Context
David Baldock - Institute for European Enviromental Policy

14.45 UK Policy for ESAs
Dudley Coates - MAFF

15.30 Tea

SESSION II:

Landscape and Conservation Issues

Chairman: Peter Costigan, CSG MAFF

16.00 Grassiands: The historical Context
John Sheail - ITE

16.45 Grassland management and biodiversity
John Milne - MLURI

17.30 Close

18.00 - Poster viewing

19.00 (with authors in attendance)

20.00 Dinner

24 September 1997

SESSION IIIa: Science into Practice
Chairman: Steve Peel, ADAS

09.00 An overview of ESAs
Andrew Swash - FRCA

09.45 Monitoring methods
Nigel Critchley - ADAS

10.30 Coffee

Offered Papers:-

11.00 Biological monitoring of grassiands in West Fermanagh and Erne Lakeland ESA
R P Cameron - Queens University, Belfast

11.20 Monitoring vegetation in the Scottish ESAs
A Cummins et a]. - ITE

11.40 Experimental and monitoring studies of the use of raised water levels for grassland rehabilitation in lowland ESAs
0 Mountford et al. - ITE

12.00 Hay meadow grassland types in the West Fermanagh and Erne Lakeland ESA
G M Hoppé et al. - DANI

12.30 Lunch

SESSION II1b:

Science into Practice - Application
Chairman: Richard Jefferson, English Nature

13.30 Upland Meadow grasslands in the E8As
Roger Smith - University of Newcastle

13.50 My experiences of hill farming in the Pennine Dales ESA
Nicholas Howard - Allendale

14.10 Lowland wet grassland in the ESAs
Jerry Tallowin & Owen Mountford - IGER & ITE

14.30 How the ESA affects my farming
Patrick Casement - North Antrim

14.50 Calcareous grassiands in the ESAs
Charles Gibson*, Richard Jefferson+ & Heather Robinson+ - Bioscan* & English Nature+

15.10 Farming on the South Downs
Chris Passmore - West Sussex

15.30 Tea

Offered Papers:-

16.00 Effects of management practices on soil microbial communities in upland grassland
R D Bardgett etal. - School of Biological Sciences, University of Manchester

16.20 The impact of grassland management on threatened butterflies within ESAs
M S Warren - Butterfly Conservation

16.40 The selection of grazing marshes by breeding birds
S Peel and T Milsom - ADAS and CSL

17.00 Conservation and management of Molinia & Juncus pastures in Wales, with particular reference to agri-environmental schemes
T H Blackstock - Countyside Council for Wales

17.20 Multi-site experiments on the restoration of botancially diverse grassland in ESAs
R Pywell, S Peel and A Hopkins - ITE/ADAS/IGER

17.40 Close

18.00- Poster viewing

19.00 (with authors in attendance)

20.00 Conference Dinner

After-dinner speaker John Rodwell, Unit of Vegetation $cience, Lancaster University

25 September 1997

SESSION IV: The Future
Chairman: Jim McAdam, DANI

09.00 Public perceptions of the ESAs
Craig Bullock & Helen McHenry - MLURI

09.45 Cost benefit for the taxpayer?
Bob Crabtree - MLURI

10.30 Coffee

11.00 Impact of the ESA schemes on farm businesses
Andrew Clark - NFU

11.45 The way forward with ESAs
Roger Wilkins - IGER

12.30 Close of conference followed by lunch

13.30 Transport leaves Lancaster University for Optional afternoon visit to a farm within the Lakes ESA
Tony Graham, ESA Project Officer, FRCA

17.00 Return to University of Lancaster

COSTS

CLOSING DATE FOR REGISTRATION - FRIDAY 15TH AUGUST

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