Nature should not be something we can only watch on TV or travel to see

Wildlife was once part of daily life around us, we have a chance to revive our natural world with the Environment Bill

‘The Environment Act for England could set the agenda for saving nature in the UK’ (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

This week millions of us will be inspired and captivated by the UK’s wildlife as Springwatch brings the secret life of familiar species into our home. We all remember the hope of a seal pup named Scout who set out to discover the world and the heartbreaking Herculean effort to save the seven bottlenose whales, stranded in an inland loch during Autumnwatch last year.

This year, the drama has also been playing out in Westminster, with the secretary of state responding to the calls of more than 150,000 concerned voices by amending key legislation to protect the environment.

Over the last few months, politicians have been discussing the details of the Environment Act for England. This could set the agenda for saving nature in the UK and commit the government and future governments to the task of reviving our world. This is what we need to see as the Bill returns to Parliament and is debated.

We are in the midst of a nature and climate emergency. There is a mounting body of scientific evidence showing almost half of UK species are in decline, with more than one in 10 at risk of extinction. For many, the pandemic brought these declines into focus, there was a realisation that this is happening now, at home and all around us.

During last summer’s lockdown, we noticed that more people began having conversations about how and why they were seeing so few birds in their gardens and neighbourhoods. For some, last year became a year when they reconnected with nature. It became an escape that improved our collective physical and mental health. More than a million people took part in our annual Big Garden Birdwatch. But others feel increasingly disconnected from nature.  For them, our natural world has become something to travel to or watch on television rather than be part of where they live.

This is why we need an effective Environment Bill. And, this is why we were disappointed that after years of delay the Environment Bill was not fit for purpose when it was first presented to MPs.

In response, we have been talking with our politicians about the need to improve the draft Bill, to include meaningful and legally binding targets for 2030 that recognise the scale and urgency of the nature emergency, the imperative to guarantee action. Thousands of our supporters joined us in calling for our politicians to do better.

The government has responded by committing to introducing a legally binding target to halt the decline of species this decade. Now it is time to consider what will also need to be in place to achieve this.

We must support those who own or manage land as they will play a vital role in nature’s recovery. Without them, it is doubtful most targets will be met, so we need an effective land management scheme that encourages and rewards farmers who deliver environmental benefits.

Many of the most important places for wildlife are currently failing because they are not being appropriately managed and are disconnected from each other. These are the last strongholds of many of our most rare and threatened plants and animals. Fixing this requires more funding as well as providing advice, support, monitoring and sometimes enforcement action from Natural England.

We must ensure that planning decisions make space for nature and that developments, including major infrastructure projects, deliver a net gain for wildlife so that we stop trying to force nature into smaller and more fragmented spaces. This must result in stronger, not weaker, protections for nature, which rigorously assess the potential harm we might do as well as providing safeguards for nature’s recovery. We must also increase the access for everyone to nature-rich green spaces and the benefits they bring in terms of health and wellbeing.

We need to recognise the role we can play as an island nation in protecting our seas by delivering effective management of marine protected areas, including by banning any environmentally damaging fishing activities and balancing how human activity impacts life above and below the waves. We must also improve the condition of our fresh waterways by reducing harmful pollutants and improving them as healthy and nature-rich spaces that support wildlife, land and communities from their source to the sea.

We can revive our world. It is clear that people care about our natural world, that we all want to see once familiar wildlife return to our daily lives. An effective Environment Bill for England can set us up to succeed, so that we can enjoy our country’s amazing wildlife wherever we live, not just on our TV screens.

Beccy Speight is chief executive of the RSPB