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August 21st 2000 - The National
Trust The interesting weather in England continued snow falls, in the north, drifting to a foot deep were reported in the news while we, in Shepperton had a 'normal' warm summer day. At our Rotary meeting Bob Boyle gave the Club our 'thought for the day', his subject being the oxygenation of the planet by trees. |
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Mr Stan Palling, a volunteer from the National Trust, was our speaker for the night. We heard a fascinating talk in which he described the history of the National Trust and explained its work in preserving the British coastline.
The National Trust was formed in1896 preservation natural beauty historic interest. Stan explained who set up the Trust, its purpose, and the fact that the National Trust is charity relying on its 2.5m supporters. It owns 600 miles of coastline, the first property was 4.5 acres in North Wales.
It has been building up a portfolio over the years, the Lizard headland was bought to prevent spoilage. After the 1939-45 war, the seaside was 'discovered' as a holiday facility and used for holiday homes, caravan parks, marinas etc and in 1945 the entire coast surveyed. The conclusion was that one third had been spoiled by industry, one third was partly developed or of low interest and a final third was worth preserving. In 1965 £2m was raised to further the Trust's objectives which has now, in total, grown to £32m. Project Neptune is the name of the initiative to maintain public access and to preserve the beauty of our Island's coastline. The
Trust also buys property. The first one bought was on the Gower
peninsular. The process is essentially
piecemeal, the Trust wants
to preserve and protect. It was explained that the
coast can be dangerous. Some work has to be done and toilets etc
have to be provided as facilities for the visitors. A lot
of this work is done by volunteers.
Stan explained that archeology e.g. alum works in Yorkshire, lighthouses, tin working mines in Cornwall and Conway suspension bridge were all examples of this interesting aspect. Specific coastline problems include erosion. Cliffs and sand dunes are all vulnerable to the effects of the sea and the elements.
The Trust is also keen to protect the coastal wildlife including Cormorants Puffins etc. Ironically people visiting keep away seagulls who would take eggs and thus assist preservation. Eider ducks are happy with visitors although terns are keen to attack. Restoration projects can be seen at Ipswich where a disused Ministry of Defence shell testing site is being brought back to condition and in Durham where cliff coat sites, over last 8 years, have had the accumulated slag from years of coal mining are being shifted. Stan explained that it costs £40 pounds to buy foot of coast. Threats to the coastline - wind power generators which are noisy and require sub-stations are one challenge. Pollution continues, Poole harbour being an example, there is a real problem of waste material to be tackled and also litter - it costs £30,000 to clear Studland beach alone each year. All this work is monitored by wardens and a lot of the work is done by volunteers. Estuaries are an important conservation opportunity e.g. New Town IOW, now preserved. The National Trust owns St Michael's Mount, the Needles and many other key sites. It believes that coastline is for everyone and should be preserved for future generations. Stan took questions and received enthusiastic applause for his illuminating and fascinating talk.
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