A NEW expert voice has been brought in to fight on behalf of Dartmoor's upland farmers following the resignation of Professor Roy Brown.
Dr Peter Beale has been brought in to succeed Prof Brown, who left his post at Dartmoor Commoners' Council in March, just over 12 months after he was appointed.
Prof Brown, an ecologist, had been charged with creating a balance between farming and conservation needs on Dartmoor, but he caused a stir in the council with some of his views.
A report from a closed meeting of the council in May said he thought the Dartmoor Commons Act was doomed and he was of the opinion the ESA (Environmentally Sensitive Areas) schemes, run by MAFF to reward farmers for treating their land in an eco-friendly manner, were coming to an end through lack of funding.
Chairman John Hodge said both they and MAFF were concerned over Prof Brown's views, and the FRCA (Farming and Rural Conservation Agency) had assured the council there was little truth in the rumours regarding ESA agreements — the whole of Dartmoor continued to be eligible for entry into the scheme.
Since then council secretary Cherry Seage said the number of areas in the scheme, which is in its infancy on Dartmoor, had doubled.
'Mostly because the farmers are having to rely on conservation subsidies more and more, although it has been unpopular while markets were buoyant because it ties farmers down,' she said.
The council voted in favour of accepting Prof Brown's resignation in a closed meeting on April 5.
Mrs Seage said Prof Brown had been commissioned to look after the whole of Dartmoor.
Dr Peter Beale has been appointed in a somewhat lesser role.
'Each common needs to be approached separately. We now envisage contracting him to do one common — see how that goes and perhaps commissioning him common by common as required,' said Mrs Seage.