Opinion: Views split over jailing of Herefordshire farmer
© Richard Stanton My partner comes from Herefordshire so our regular treat is to escape the fens and head for his house near Ledbury.
The dramatic change in scenery, from the moonscape of South Lincolnshire to green and leafy hills in the West, is the perfect antidote to our busy lives in the East.
I always look forward to the view from our bedroom window of livestock grazing in the field. This is especially pleasant when someone else is responsible for looking after the animals.
See also: Farmer jailed for damaging protected River LuggÂ
About the author
It is interesting to experience a different farming environment to the one in which you were brought up. I adore the diversity of production in Herefordshire.
In a short drive you will travel past phenomenal, intensive horticultural businesses, pedigree cattle, an artisan crisp factory here, a state-of-the-art brewery or distillery there.
In-between, hop farmers and cider makers preserve the traditions of their ancestors and you can’t move for vending machines selling local produce. It’s wonderful.
Of course, the big topic of conversation among Herefordians right now is the altercation between John Price and the Environment Agency.
Mr Price is well-known in the county as a successful farmer with high standards. I had heard his name spoken reverentially long before his handiness with a 360 digger had hit the news.
His decision to take matters into his own hands and to clear a stretch of the River Lugg to speed water away from his farm has divided opinion.
It makes the Brexit vote look as uncontroversial as the choice of lamb or beef on the Sunday lunch menu.
I shan’t add my own opinion. Each of us has a view informed by our individual experiences and I don’t want to alienate half of our friends.
I defer to the judgement of a magistrate who has weighed up the evidence. It is, however, undeniably sad to see a man of such abilities locked behind bars at this stage in his life.
Those among us who bristle at the verdict facing Mr Price shouldn’t ignore the public mood regarding the obligations of owners or occupiers of land.
Were any of us to find a solid gold medieval goblet in our field then we would happily claim it. By the same rights, we should expect to take responsibility for the water and wildlife that settle on it too.
Expecting to drain rainwater away from your own land immediately is a bit selfish. Channelling a 5cm downpour from your potato field quickly is an incomplete solution if it is going to end up in the kitchen/diner of someone’s newbuild semi and rot their plasterboard walls.
The huge mortgages on these places mean the owners can’t always afford a tracked excavator of their own to pass the water even further downstream.
For the new factory I have recently built, the planners insisted upon a huge water storage pond to contain all the roof water from a 100-year storm.
With farmland, we should brace ourselves for similar attenuating measures through increased soil organic matter, permanent vegetation, sacrificial areas for flooding and building reservoirs.
If weather patterns continue as they are, this discussion will rage and I might find myself grateful that we have at least one house that is above sea level.