𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Andy Burnham has been urged to rethink environmental policies that countryside campaigners claim are increasing the risk of devastating wildfires across England.

The warning comes as the country battles another prolonged spell of hot and dry weather, with more than 1,000 wildfires already recorded across England and Wales this year. Figures shared by the National Fire Chiefs Council show that 1,017 wildfires have been recorded so far, matching last year’s record-breaking total.

While soaring temperatures and drought conditions have been blamed for increasing the risk of fires, rural campaigners argue that changes in how upland landscapes are managed could also be contributing to the problem.

Large areas of the UK’s uplands are covered by peatland, where vegetation can become dry and provide fuel for fires during prolonged periods of hot weather.

Historically, farmers and gamekeepers have used controlled winter burning to clear older, woody vegetation and create breaks that can help prevent wildfires from spreading rapidly during the summer.

However, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has said burning on deep peatland should be treated as a “last resort” and permitted only in “exceptional circumstances”.

Defra argues that burning peat can damage habitats, affect air quality and undermine efforts to reach net zero.

Last September, the department extended the licensing regime for controlled burning, with the new rules covering three times the area previously subject to licensing.

Campaigners have described the restrictions as part of a wider rewilding approach, in which human intervention across large areas of countryside is reduced.

The Country Land and Business Association, which represents farmers, landowners and rural businesses, has accused the Government of imposing “a de facto ban on the most effective wildfire prevention method across the highest-risk upland land”.

In a consultation response in May, the CLA warned that hotter and drier summers could result in “bigger and more frequent wildfires”.

The organisation also claimed recent Defra policy had effectively banned prescribed burning on peat soils deeper than 30cm.

Jonathan Roberts of the CLA said recent fires showed the policy needed to be reconsidered. “Last year was the worst on record for wildfires, yet ministers responded by making it harder for land managers to carry out the controlled burning necessary to stop wildfires taking hold in the warmer months,” he said.

The Countryside Alliance has also criticised the restrictions, claiming they could increase the likelihood of major fires.

It said: “The Countryside Alliance has repeatedly warned that by ignoring the latest scientific evidence, the Government is significantly increasing the risk of catastrophic wildfires.”

Former England cricket captain Lord Botham has also entered the debate, arguing that the disappearance of traditional winter burning has left large areas of continuous vegetation.

“The winter burns used to create firebreaks. Now we have huge expanses of continuous, ageing vegetation,” he wrote in the Telegraph. “The result is disaster after disaster.”

He added: “For two decades we have added far too much vegetation to our landscape and are now suffering the inevitable consequences.”

Defra disputes the argument that controlled burning is the best answer, instead promoting peatland restoration and rewetting.

The department says restoring degraded peatland reduces the amount of combustible material and makes landscapes better able to withstand wildfire.

A Defra spokesman said: “Peatland restoration is the most effective, sustainable, and long-term solution for reducing fuel load on degraded peatlands, as wetter, healthy-functioning peatlands hold more water in the landscape for longer and are more resilient to the impacts of wildfire.”

The Government’s position is that restoring peatland provides a long-term solution rather than relying on regular burning.

The debate comes as drought conditions spread across large parts of England and Wales, adding to concerns about the increasing threat of wildfires during periods of extreme heat.

Burnham chaired a meeting of the Government’s emergency Cobra committee on Wednesday in response to the prolonged period of exceptionally hot and dry weather.

Climate change has also been linked to the growing wildfire threat. A Met Office study of the 2022 heatwave found that climate change had made wildfires six times more likely.