Diversification Blog Series Part 7 - Using Your Land For Green Activities
Posted on 24th February 2023 at 21:59
With the environment so firmly on the rural agenda, we have had a think about some of the sustainable green activities you can do with your land. This can help reduce your own carbon footprint and provide a greener, cleaner country for everyone.
In addition to agricultural industry schemes such as the Sustainable Farming Initiative, the Environmental Land Management Scheme and the increasingly popular Regenerative Farming practices, you can direct your farm and property diversification plans toward the environment too. Here are some sustainable ideas of things you can do with your land, in which we have experience from a planning perspective.
Green Burial Grounds
This can be a human or pet cemetery with woodland planted around. A woodland burial is an eco friendly funeral option where a biodegradable coffin is typically used. This makes it better for the environment which particularly appeals to some.
Composting/Materials Recycling and Handling Facilities
If you want to make greener home improvements, you can use your land to offer services for recycling materials such as wood chipping from forestry or recycled earth taken from construction excavation works. These can be put to good use for composting or reusing building materials such as broken down hardcore/tarmac.
Pick Your Own
A pick your own farm is a sustainable way of living where your food comes directly from the ground to your plate organically. This can be anything from traditional Strawberries to Pumpkins, Christmas Trees and Flowers. These permanent or semi permanent crops can last for many seasons rather than being planted again each time after harvest. As with any selling direct to the public, this may well fall under Permitted Development policies within the planning system.
Solar Panels and Wind Farms
Solar and wind are great ways to generate additional funds for your enterprise, selling to the National Grid, as well as helping you to power your home and/or business without adding to your carbon footprint. By generating electricity using clean and sustainable technology, your environmental impact can be minimised and valuable new profit streams accessed.
Flower Farms
A significant percentage of flowers in the UK are flown in and not grown locally. Having a flower farm means you can grow your own British flowers and reduce your carbon footprint by having a shorter distance for the flowers to travel from field to vase.
Sustainable Woods and Tree Planting
Planting your own trees can reduce the greenhouse effect by removing carbon dioxide from the air and releasing oxygen. This helps to reduce our environmental impact. You can also grow your own sustainable wood, the wood is harvested in a way that ensures healthy and sustainable growth. If you have development land, bear in mind it is a requirement to meet the Biodiversity Net Gain criteria, which means landowners are developers are including tree planting schemes on land adjacent to or within a certain distance of the development.
This blog series is designed to inspire rural land owners and businesses to undertake sustainable projects to help provide a greener environment and reduce our carbon footprint.
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