AS much as half of Dartmoor could be opened up to permanent access for ramblers, under the new Countryside and Rights of Way Act which became law last week.
So said Bryan Linfoot, Devon footpaths and countryside secretary for the Ramblers' Association.
Moorland landowners and farmers will have to give truly open access to walkers under the new law, he said.
'The moor has had no permanent open access. Most rights of access have been permissive and when permission expires it is often not renewed.'
However, ramblers will not get the same right of access to Dartmoor's firing ranges, which are crown property and not subject to the new law, he added. The Ramblers' Association will continue to campaign for better access to MoD land.
The Dartmoor National Park Authority said walkers already had 'unparallelled' access to moorland under the Dartmoor Commons Act of 1985. It said that 47.5 per cent of the moor was already accessible and the figure would be increased by the new law.
The act gives the right to walk on around four million acres of mountain, moor, heath, down and common land in England and Wales, subject to certain restrictions of behaviour.
It is likely to be five years or more before the impact of the act starts to be felt, as new maps will have to be designed by the Countryside Agency showing public rights of way.
In the near future the government is expected to publish guidelines for Local Access Forums, umbrella groups which will be set up to establish local rights of way by consultation and negotiation.
A spokesman for the Country Landowners' Association said the new act was a recipe for confusion, as no right to roam would exist until the Countryside Agency had delivered definitive maps.
'There could be an appeals process and we think there could be a case for compensation, as property rights are being devalued.'