ARC makes species reintroduction recommendations to government for proposed new legislation

ARC makes species reintroduction recommendations to government for proposed new legislation - Amphibian and Reptile Conservation

The government should introduce and pay for a compensation scheme for farmers and other land managers to mitigate potential negative effects on livelihoods that result from the reintroduction of some species, a parliamentary select committee has recommended in a report following consultation with key eNGO’s including ARC. The Environment Food and Rural Affairs Committee also said species should not be reintroduced and given protected status – as has been the case with beavers – without a full management plan being in place.

The Committee launched its report, Species Reintroduction, at a specially convened press conference at the Great Yorkshire Show hosted by the Chair of the Committee, Sir Robert Goodwill MP, at 0930 on Tuesday July 11, 2023.

The report said a compensation scheme and urgent clarity from Government via a national strategy for reintroductions is the only way to alleviate the concerns of farmers and other land managers who may be impacted by high-risk reintroduction projects.

The Committee recognised that species reintroductions have the potential to:

help the government meet its biodiversity and species abundance goals;
benefit local communities (for example through improving the environment and encouraging tourism);
restore ecosystems; and
secure the future of organisms in the wild.

The Committee heard that reintroductions need careful long-term plans to identify and manage potential adverse effects on local communities and other land users. In the UK, animals such as beavers and birds of prey have been in the spotlight as examples of controversial reintroductions, but the Committee also heard that many species—particularly amongst plants, fungi, and insects— pose little or no risk.