Clarkson's Farm

[BeeP]

Watched it with my wife, both loved it so much we started the whole series again.

It's great to see that even though he is still not what you could call handy he has come a long way from where he began.

There is so much I agree with, some deliberately inflammatory as is his way but I often sit there thinking jeez some sense does come out of him.....am I just too old for this world?

 

[Bluecube]

The older you get, the more easily you identify stupidity and lack of common sense, both of which are endemic in the political class. As a farmer (and I think it’s fair to call Clarkson a farmer now) Clarkson is very much at the sharp end of ridiculous government edicts and bureaucracy so it’s no wonder he’ll pass comment. A significant part of all the series has been educating the public on how difficult farming is and the nonsense farmers have to deal with day to day

 

[b0rn2sk8]

What it also does is highlight how inefficient small family farms in reality.

How has any small farmer got any hope of competing with a farmer in Poland where land costs 1/10 the price or a farmer in America where a single field of wheat is the size of Northamptonshire.

You need massive scale to have any hope of making a reasonable margin.

 

[Bluecube]

What it also does is highlight how inefficient small family farms in reality.

How has any small farmer got any hope of competing with a farmer in Poland where land costs 1/10 the price or a farmer in America where a single field of wheat is the size of Northamptonshire.

You need massive scale to have any hope of making a reasonable margin.

Farmers in the UK aren't allowed to produce crops on an industrial scale. That would involve removing fences, hedgerows, dykes and trees - pretty much destroying the countryside as everyone likes it to be. Fields in the US, Canada and to a lesser extent those of the European Steppes are desolate wastelands solely for crop production which is fine as there's no one there to complain about that. The inefficiencies of UK food production are partly the result of a balancing act between actually producing food and conserving the countryside.

 

[JonRGV250]

How has any small farmer got any hope of competing with a farmer in Poland where land costs 1/10 the price or a farmer in America where a single field of wheat is the size of Northamptonshire.

Hence a lot of them taking the easy money and plonking inefficient solar farms on grade 1 farmland.
There was one (120 acres) planned right opposite my cottage, but we got the land designated as a conservation area and therefore it was refused.
The same farmer tried to get application to build god knows how many new houses in the village, but we stopped that as well.
Go NIMBY’s!

 

[Btone]

Hence a lot of them taking the easy money and plonking inefficient solar farms on grade 1 farmland.
There was one (120 acres) planned right opposite my cottage, but we got the land designated as a conservation area and therefore it was refused.
The same farmer tried to get application to build god knows how many new houses in the village, but we stopped that as well.
Go NIMBY’s!

always find it "funny" that you feel you had the "right" to tell someone else what they can or cannot do with THEIR property, but i bet if people started telling what you can and cannot do with your cottage you would not be one bit happy about it

 

[JonRGV250]

Strangely enough I’m at no time in the future planning on building a solar farm on my property, so it’s fairly unlikely anyone will tell me what to do with my cottage.
Actually that’s not entirely true.
My house is in the conservation area, so there’s a whole host of things I now can’t do to it.
Do I care..
Nope.
And just for the lols we stopped a planned quarry going ahead just on the outskirts of the village as well.
Now what is “funny” is that the company building it had already paid for the land and had started working on it.
Big mistake that was.

 

[Btone]

so i take it then, next time your going to paint, you have a village meeting about what colours you use, what that want a new kitchen,better as the neighbours what they like, really like that new computer set up, sorry to much noise and light pollution
there lots of stuff you do about YOUR house that if the people were to stick the nose in to stop you. you soon get very upset.
personal ive found that while you may have "stopped" the local farmer from doing stuff, it always comes back to bite you in a long run

 

[JonRGV250]

No, don’t be silly.

 

[Btone]

how it being silly, your the one who believes that you a right to tell people what they can and can not do with their property, so by that logic we should have the right to tell you what you can or can do with your property

 

[JonRGV250]

They have got the right now my house is in the conservation area, I couldn’t care less.
Do keep up.
I’ll let you into a little secret about being silly, and that’s destroying 120 acres of grade one farmland with concrete, fences and substations.
Not to mention the wildlife it’d disturb.

 

[Btone]

BS, I bet no one has told you what colour you can paint you living room, or any thing else, there might be a few minor things that you can't do to the outside of the building, but it won't effect your lively hood, were you felt it was ok to stop the farmer from putting solar on his PRIVATE land, for the simple reason you don't like it

 

[200sols]

let you into a little secret about being silly, and that’s destroying 120 acres of grade one farmland with concrete, fences and substations.
Not to mention the wildlife it’d disturb.

That depends entirely how the land is farmed. Modern farming in the UK is terrible for nature, those fields you see are pretty devoid of life. Plenty of research out there showing well mamaged solar farms actually boost biodiversity rather than the opposite.

It's not simply a case of all solar farms are bad as its not the case all arable farms are bad.

 

[varkanoid]

Watched it with my wife, both loved it so much we started the whole series again.

It's great to see that even though he is still not what you could call handy he has come a long way from where he began.

There is so much I agree with, some deliberately inflammatory as is his way but I often sit there thinking jeez some sense does come out of him.....am I just too old for this world?

It was a brilliant season cant wait for the next one. Spoilt a bit by already knowing what happened with the pub etc. Wife also hasnt watched Season 1 and 2 so I said I would watch them again. Harriet Clowan was brilliant. The Caleb meets Harriet bit was funny.

 

[JonRGV250]

for the simple reason you don't like it

Yup, I was hardly the only one that objected, but keep ranting.

 

[JonRGV250]

That depends entirely how the land is farmed. Modern farming in the UK is terrible for nature, those fields you see are pretty devoid of life. Plenty of research out there showing well mamaged solar farms actually boost biodiversity rather than the opposite.

Plenty of life in this field, it being the one that was targeted for the solar farm.

And some words from the objection..

The quantum of grade I, II* and II listed buildings in the area, non-designated heritage assets, their relationships with one another, their agricultural landscape and ancient woodland all make positive contributions to the special interest of the area, enhancing its rural character and offering quality examples of vernacular timber framed buildings of varying statuses.

Seems a perfect area to put a solar farm rather than on a brownfield site dontcha think?

 

[200sols]

Plenty of life in this field, it being the one that was targeted for the solar farm.

And some words from the objection..

The quantum of grade I, II* and II listed buildings in the area, non-designated heritage assets, their relationships with one another, their agricultural landscape and ancient woodland all make positive contributions to the special interest of the area, enhancing its rural character and offering quality examples of vernacular timber framed buildings of varying statuses.

Seems a perfect area to put a solar farm rather than on a brownfield site dontcha think?

No argument about brownfield here and plenty of warehouse roofs available as well. However that field looks likenyour typical farm field, low biodiversity. The only real biodiversity places on farms are the hedges and if they've left space the wild meadows etc. Sadly all too rare these days ironically as a result of intensive farming.

 

[JonRGV250]

There was I believe a study done on biodiversity and suchlike which I could probably find if I can be bothered to look (every single angle needed to be covered to get it stopped) and I’m fairly sure that study certainly helped in the solar farms refusal.
It’s also kind of helped having a KC (who specialises in planning law) living in one of the listed properties.
After all is said and done it was an idiotic idea to put it there, hence its refusal.
People can waaaah and virtue signal as much as they want, but destroying our prime farmland when there’s (as you’ve said) better places to put solar is utterly moronic.
Once it’s gone, it’s gone as it’ll go brownfield after a set number of years.

 

[Btone]

Yup, I was hardly the only one that objected, but keep ranting.

yea but your the one on here gloating, so ill keep ranting about people like you,

did you think about what the farmer going trew, currently prices for a tonne of wheat around £180, the same price he was getting back in the 80's, in the mean time all his other cost's have skyrocketed, he simply not making enough money to keep doing what he doing, that solar was most likely a last ditch attempt to give him a steady income of the land he owns. but thanks to entitled people like you, who like they should have the right to control other people property, and the sad think is you cant even see how wrong that is cause you think it never happen to you,

so lets see what happens when the farmer go, and his land bought by the likes of Dyson or Blackhorse, with deep pockets and a bank of KC's who make your KC look like the village idiot
or even worst he quits and but the land into a SFI, and suddenly you cant buy local food, and you eating bread made from some 3rd world wheat (cause it cheap)laced with all the chemical's we band years ago

 

[spile]

always find it "funny" that you feel you had the "right" to tell someone else what they can or cannot do with THEIR property, but i bet if people started telling what you can and cannot do with your cottage you would not be one bit happy about it

No the same rules apply but the effect on the environment is in proportion to the amount of land. You and I are unlikely to be here in 100 but the land your farm and my property sits on will. We’re both trustees.