22/04/21 - Building in AONBs, a dry and cold April, worm farms and fishing safety

Farming Today

• Episode: 22/04/21 - Building in AONBs, a dry and cold April, worm farms and fishing safety
• Website: Farming Today
• Feed URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qj8q/episodes/downloads.rss
• Duration: 00:13:21
• Published: 2021-04-22 07:00

England’s Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty are under threat from ‘reckless development’ according to CPRE, the countryside charity, which is calling on the government to halt it. AONB’s are given extra legal protections to preserve some of the country’s outstanding landscapes, but it is possible to get permission to build in them. CPRE says that since 2012 the amount of land built on or earmarked for development has more than doubled. It's been an unusually dry and cold April. Charlotte Smith speaks to the BBC Weather Centre to find out why, and hears what it means for farmers. We visit a worm farm, and find out how worms are being used to process farm waste and provide nutrient-rich fertiliser at the same time. And seven UK fishermen have died in accidents over the past few months, and a campaign is being launched to try to prevent more deaths. Over the last decade there have been, on average, 6 fatalities every year. 85% as a result of fishermen going overboard into the sea. The Fishing Industry Safety Group’s Home and Dry Campaign wants boat owners and captains to carry out risk assessments, man overboard drills and to make sure crew wear life jackets. Presented by Charlotte Smith Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Heather Simons