UK national parks

Hiking the peaks of Snowdonia, boating on the Norfolk Broads or wandering the vast wilderness of Dartmoor, it can be easy for us to take these places for granted. In England, most of us live within a few hours’ drive of a national park. And unlike those of the United States, they cost nothing to visit, bar the occasional car parking charge. We could also be forgiven for thinking, looking around, that these wonderful landscapes and the wildlife within them are well protected, and that when we come to visit, we are helping to conserve them. But we would be wrong.

The wildlife in our national parks is in trouble. We need to look seriously at what’s gone amiss, and what our priorities really are.

Almost 70 years after the English national parks system was established, the government has launched a review into whether it still meets our needs in the 21st century, and whether the current network of 10 national parks and 34 Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty should be expanded. Probably most people would look on this idea positively, and why not?

But what would be the point if the model as it stands is not working as it should?

The 2016 UK State of Nature report revealed that this is currently one of the most ‘nature-depleted’ countries in the world. That is, over half of the 8,000 species studied are in decline. Even more shocking is that our national parks and Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSIs), which receive additional investment and protections, are not bucking the national trend.

So what’s going on?

One of the biggest problems with tourism is that too often it depletes natural resources, while giving very little back in the way of conservation. In English national parks, the economic benefits of tourism do not provide sufficient justification for the environmental impacts.

The Guardian at the moment is spearheading a conversation about the usage and funding of Australian national parks. It’s high time we considered whether our own parks are still best served by allowing full, free access to visitors. After all, if people care enough to travel to them, surely they would also be invested in helping with their preservation.

We can’t charge entry fees to raise funds and control visitor numbers, as happens in the United States. Our parks have too many points of access, for one thing, and thousands of people live and work within their boundaries.

Instead we should be looking at other solutions, such as levying a small tourist tax to be collected from overnight visitors by accommodation providers, perhaps priced seasonally, as happens in many parts of Europe. A charge could also levied on coach groups, and ticket costs raised at public car parks. These aren’t the only solutions, perhaps not the best, and maybe they’re just a jumping off point for a wider conversation. But they would be a start.

It’s time for the tourism industry to stop freeloading in national parks. Even a tiny tourist tax, perhaps £1 a head, could raise millions for conservation every year given the number of people that visit. But it’s crucial to make clear to people why this charge needs to be imposed, and exactly what the funds are being used for, if it is to gain widespread support.

A three-pronged approach is vital if we want to get our parks back on course.

1. We need to return to the guiding principle behind the national parks system. Conservation must carry more weight than leisure and commercial interests. Our right to visit doesn’t supersede the importance of protecting biodiversity.

2. Our national parks need stronger governance, led by a completely independent national organisation, free from interference and ideally numbering expert conservationists among its ranks. This body should have the ability to sign off on, or reject, individual park management plans without interference.

3. Tourism is a big part of the problem, but it also has the potential to be a big part of the solution. Decades of access to national parks has led us to take them for granted. For the price of a souvenir fridge magnet, everyone can help to protect these incredible landscapes and their wildlife so that generations to come can continue to enjoy them. In 2018 the English national parks funding was £44.8m. Given that substantial numbers of visitors to UK national parks choose to stay overnight, if there were a tax of just £2 per night, it would likely come close to that amount again.