NEW PROTECTION FOR HEDGEROWS

New Hedgerow Regulations to come into force in 1997.

The aim of the project is to protect important hedgerows in the countryside by controlling their removal through a system of notification. In practice, this means that landowners would have to notify the Local Planning Authority if they wanted to remove a hedge. The Authority then have twenty-eight days in which either to grant the request or to inform the landowner that the hedge is important and therefore is protected. The reason this legislation has come into force is a result of the amount of hedgerow removal over the last thirty years and although this has slowed down to 3,600 km throughout the country last year, it is still cause for concern.

Coverage
The Regulations would apply to hedgerows in the countryside used for agriculture, forestry, Village Greens and Local Nature Reserves, etc. It does not apply to garden hedges.

Important hedges
The Regulations are designed to conserve important hedges. An example of the type of hedge which would be classified as important would be an ancient Parish boundary hedge. These Regulations are not intended to apply to hedges under thirty years old but are thought to cover about 17. 5% of hedges nationally. The Island's figure is expected to be higher than this because of the large numbers of ancient field systems that exist. It is considered that the Hedgerow Protection Scheme should:

• Provide effective protection for important hedgerows for which no amount of replanting can substitute.
• Be simple to operate and understand for all those subject to the controls or responsibility for administrating them.
• Be fair, reasonable and practical, being applied evenhandedly across England and Wales.
• Strike a balance between environmental benefits and impact on businesses.

It is intended that the Regulations will apply to countryside hedgerows which are 20 metres or more in length. It is recognised that there is a need for reasonable access in and out of fields and the necessary work is precluded from the hedgerow removal conditions. The maximum penalty for an unauthorised removal is up to £5,000. The Regulations provide a safety net for those important hedgerows for which new planting is no substitute.

The Regulations is not the only or main way of protecting hedgerows. The most effective means of securing long-term protection for hedgerows is by careful stewardship of the countryside, to take account of the environmental and conservation needs. The Government encourages this separately through incentive schemes such as Countryside Stewardship. The Isle of Wight Council's Countryside Panel considered the issues raised by the draft document and responded in full to the Department of the Environment.

Anyone requiring further information on the proposed Hedgerow Protection Scheme can contact the Countryside Section on +44 (0) 1983 823893.

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