Heritage property, tourism and the UK Disability Discrimination Act

Heritage tourism depends on a physical resource based primarily on listed buildings and scheduled monuments. Visiting or staying in a historic building provides a rich tourism experience, but historic environments date from eras when access for disabled people was not a consideration. Current UK Government policy now promotes social inclusion via an array of equal opportunities, widening participation and anti-discrimination policies. Historic environments enjoy considerable legislative protection from adverse change, but now need to balance conservation with public access for all. This paper discusses the basis of research being undertaken by The College of Estate Management funded by the Mercers Company of London and the Harold Samuel Trust. It assesses how the 1995 Disability Discrimination Act has changed the legal obligations of owners/operators in managing access to listed buildings in tourism use. It also examines the key stakeholders and power structures in the management of historic buildings and distinguishes other important players in the management process.

Wetland restoration within agricultural watersheds: Balancing water quality protection with habitat conservation

Peat wetlands that have been restored from agricultural Land have the potential to act as Long term sources of phosphorus (P) and, therefore have to potenital to accelerate freshwater eutrophication. During a two-year study the water table in a eutrophic fen peat that was managed by pump drainage fluctuated annually between +20 cm and -60 cm relative to ground Level. This precise management was facilitated by the high hydraulic conductivity (K) of the humified peat (1.1 x 10(-5) m s(-1)) below around 60 cm depth. However, during one week of intermittent pumping, as much as 50 g ha(-1) dissolved P entered the pumped ditch. Summer. rainfall events and autumn reflooding also triggered P losses. The P Losses were attributed to the low P sorption capacity (217 mg kg(-1)) of the saturated peat below 60 cm, combined with its high K and the reductive dissolution of Fe bound P.

Implications of Commons Act 2006 for the registration of land as a town or village green

This paper describes the main changes of Commons Act 2006 for the registration of land as a town or village green. The purpose of the Commons Act 2006 is to protect common land and promote sustainable farming, public access to the countryside and the interests of wildlife. The changes under s15 of the Commons Act 2006 include the additional 2-year grace period for application, discounting statutory period of closure, correction of mistakes in registers, disallowing severance of rights, voluntary registration, replacement of land in exchange and some other provisions. The transitional provision contained in s15(4) Commons Act 2006 is particularly a cause for controversy as DEFRA has indicated buildings will have to be taken down where development has gone ahead and a subsequent application to register the land as a green is successful, obliging the developer to return the land to a condition consistent with the exercise by locals of recreational rights, which sums up that it would be harder in future to develop land which has the potential to be registered as a town or village green.