The Ranger's Blog

Health and safety... gone mad?

We've heard it all before... health and safety gone mad! Council bureaucrats stifle fun for little Johnny. And all that. It's a tedious debate for all concerned. Usually the argument against health and safety is that common sense should prevail. And of course it should. Really. But that means common sense both on the part of the provider, and, crucially, the user. Lest we forget, here are some good reasons why rangers and their ilk can sometimes be a bit cautious about the risks that people will willingly take in public places.

El Caminito del Rey is a walkway dating from 1901, now fallen into disrepair, pinned along the steep walls of a narrow gorge in El Chorro, near Álora in Málaga, Spain. [...] Read more!

Balloon releases: Somebody's telling you not to do it.

http://www.darwinawards.com/darwin/darwin2008-16.html

Mass balloon releases: don't do it. Just don't. Regular readers will recall many reasons why not, but in short, balloons on their way back down kill wildlife in nasty ways. Really, there are better ways to celebrate the launch of your new mobile phone shop than to throttle a turtle.

So anyway, in case you didn't spot it, there's a new, tragic, story concerning balloons and the marine environment that couldn't have a more pointed moral.[...] Read more!

Fête accompli

By Ruth D'Alessandro, The Wildlife Gardener

The Wildlife Gardener likes to get out sometimes. And what she likes most is something that's a bit original. Not for her generic shopping malls with identikit chain stores, theme parks with vomit-inducing plastic rides or restaurants that serve curly lettuce and red onion garnishes.

One date is set in stone on la famille Wildlife Gardener's calendar (and they even missed a wedding in Italy for it): the second week in July, the local village fête.

How can a village fête be original? Surely it's all shell animals...

[...] Read more!

Which is bigger: the Isle of Wight or Rutland?

Regular readers will recall The Ranger's sensitive analysis of the thorny question of whether Rutland or the Isle of Wight was the smallest county in England. His conclusion, if you've forgotten, was that it was hard to tell, and probably didn't matter anyway.

Recently, another perspective on this question has come to light - and once more tidal forces of a kind seem to play a part.

Analysis from Google Trends

[...] Read more!

Can clearing scrub be an act of homophobia?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1032816/Plans-remove-bushes-beauty-spot-spark-discrimination-claims--popular-gay-haunts.html

A curious story emerges sheepishly from the bushes in Bristol, shaking the leaves from its hair.

The Downs in Bristol are one of the oldest informal public open spaces in the country - conserved for more than 140 years by their own act of parliament. They include woodland and grassland, and spectacular views of the adjacent Avon Gorge.

Gents' toilet, The Downs, Bristol

As a part of managing that site, a management plan is now proposed - apparently the first one since 1861, so it's probably not before time. This involves cutting back quite a bit of scrub. Scrub is a generic term for bushes and vegetation that is too small to be dignified by being described as trees. It's also well-used by rangers, as it can be used euphemistically to avoid the rabid reactions of well-intentioned locals. People in general really don't like the idea of cutting down trees, although much good conservation management does involve some tree felling. Many people hearing that 'they' are about to cut down loads of trees will rush to get the pitchforks ready and man the barricades. But scrub management? It sounds so harmless. Who cares about that? Nobody. Or do they?
[...] Read more!