The Lake District is under threat from proposals to relax planning laws, leading Cumbrian charities claim.
Friends of the Lake District and Cumbria Wildlife Trust said they were alarmed at the plans to introduce Investment Zones across the country, which were an effort to speed up the building of houses and infrastructure projects.
The Government announced that the zones would include designated development sites to release more land for housing and commercial development, and it was reviewing the scheme to reward farmers for managing land in a environmentally-friendly way.
The Government added that hundreds of laws that protect wild places and ensure standards for water quality, pollution and the use of pesticide, could be removed or rewritten.
Friends of the Lake District said the plans were worrying.
Kate Willshaw, policy officer, said: “We are particularly concerned that the Government thinks that national parks and AONBs could be suitable for consideration as Investment Zones where current planning and environmental laws and regulations would be suspended and therefore a race to the bottom in standards would ensue.
“Friends of the Lake District is becoming increasingly concerned that there is a complete lack of concern for the climate, environment and landscape amongst senior ministers.
“Indeed, there is a worrying ignorance in Government around these issues with regard to their importance for supporting the economy of Cumbria and the Lake District, people’s health and wellbeing and for the protection of our habitats, wildlife and world-renowned landscapes.”
Cumbria’s Wildlife Trust said the plans would make it harder to defend special habitats from development and has encouraged its members to write to their MPs to protest.
It said it felt the Government had launched an unprecedented attack on nature.
Steven Trotter, chief executive, said: “We are concerned that the ripping up of environmental protections within these zones would in fact harm local business as well as posing serious risks to the environment.
“The Treasury-commissioned review, The Economics of Biodiversity by Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta, demonstrated that our economy depends upon the resources provided by nature – for jobs, materials, health, wellbeing, and so much more.
“We need to see an increase of financial support for nature-friendly farmers in Cumbria to secure a sustainable future for farming and nature – and help Cumbrian residents adapt better to the challenges of the climate emergency by providing them better public goods and services from land management, such as reducing flooding.”
