Prizes galore
The The National Gamekeepers' Organisation has always promoted the exceptional contribution that moorland gamekeepers play in the upkeep of our upland moorland areas, since the long running Moorland Gamekeepers Association amalgamated with the NGO many years ago.
At yesterday's AGM held in Coventry, a hundred members listened to the tireless work that the NGO deliver, along with innovative plans for the future which will safeguard and fight for the sustainability of countryside management with a gameshooting interest. To coin a well known advertisement, if Carlsberg did shooting organisations....well you know the rest.
This is the second year that Marsdens Game Feeds have sponsored the amazingly popular Conservation Champions Awards, and for the Peak District our "co-workers" did exceptionally well in receiving awards in several categories.
Ruth and Anthony picked up the Innovation Award for their team involvement in their outstanding work in producing "Wildfire is inevitable" - a risk assessment of the Peak District Moorland, which gives a blueprint for all moorland areas in mapping and monitoring the potential wildfire risk in our uplands. Whilst the report has made some organisations uncomfortable, it has without doubt, highlighted the unbelievable risk that fuel load build up has now and for the future - we are literally living and working on a ticking time bomb unless policy makers start taking wildfire seriously and implementing meaningful changes to vegetation problems on the ground.
If you are interested about moorland restoration, resilience and sustainability then Geoff Eyre needs no introduction. An agronomist at heart, he has led the way in his moorland work, decades before the eye watering grants became available. His straight talking makes him a firm favourite with gamekeepers and land managers. He was the "Special Award Winner", and whilst knowing Geoff, he would prefer his flourishing moorland habitats speak for themselves rather than receiving an award, but we were overjoyed to hear this award going to him.
A huge thanks to the The National Gamekeepers' Organisation for their continued support and showcasing the vital contribution that all of the Regional Moorland Groups make to our upland environments.