THIS
SUBMISSION
The Association will confine its submission
to the area of dry stone walling only, being the area in which
the Association has more expertise than any other organisation.
1. Dry stone walls represent the major interest
of all members, both professional and open. In many cases dry
stone walling represents the major part of members' livelihood.
DSWA members have expertise and experience of dry stone walls
throughout the United Kingdom, and pass information to the national
organisation relating to all aspects of the craft.
2. Dry stone walls exist in upland areas where
they developed as a natural method of taking in land and for confining
stock. These are "stone hedges" providing field boundaries
in areas where hedgerows are so slow to grow, or do not thrive
at all in the shallow soils and extreme climates. Dry stone walls
provide valuable shelter and habitat for many small animals. They
provide a unique upland ecosystem with different sides of the
wall providing niches for a variety of flora and fauna.
3. Wall types vary from the vertical flags of
Caithness, Cumbria and parts of Lancashire through walls of random
limestone of the Peaks and Dales to the honey coloured regular
oolitic limestone of the Cotswold region.
4. There are significant differences in technique
between major dry stone walling areas (showing that there was
a need to use the local stone in the most appropriate manner for
that stone and area). Walls reflect the local stone type as most
of the material was obtained from the clearance of surface stone
in the surrounding field, or from small, shallow quarries opened
up for the purpose of providing walling stone.
5. Incorporated within these are a wide variety
of stone features that are of historical value as they reflect
the development of country life in these upland areas over the
passage of time. Features may include pinfolds, smoots, lunkie
holes, beeboles and many others built for a specific purpose and
which contribute to the scenic and cultural variety of the landscape.
6. Unless artefacts are found during repair
or rebuild, it is rarely easy to date dry stone walls. Historical
records date some of the earliest walls from Celtic times and
there has been a progressive "intake" of land through
the Middle Ages up to the major period of industrialised wall
building between 1750-1830 at the time of the Parliamentary Enclosures.
7. The Association supports initiatives, both
governmental and private, which enable conservation of existing
walls that are a significant landscape feature in upland areas.
DSWA receives regular reports of developing dereliction of dry
stone walls in upland fringe areas. In many cases walls are no
longer stockproof with stock retained by use of pallets, wire,
etc. producing an eyesore in otherwise scenic areas.
8. The Association deplores the replacement
of walls by post and wire fences and wishes to see relevant grants
available to enable repair and rebuilding of dry stone walls in
the local vernacular style. The intrusion of wire reduces landscape
and scenic value and whilst it may appear cheaper in the short
term, such fencing is more costly in the long-term with replacement
of softwood posts every 7-10 years and much tangled wire to be
removed and disposed of.
9. The Association is unaware of any significant
protection order for dry stone walls in any of the countries in
which it operates. DSWA would welcome protection orders for dry
stone walls in scenic areas where they are of immense landscape
and historical value. The Association acknowledges it would be
difficult to confine farmers to the constraints of working within
many small, ancient field systems and as machinery becomes larger
and more costly, some intermediate walls would need to
be properly removed and that stone utilised in the repair of the
remaining walls.
10. The Dry Stone Walling Association would
ask that the committee look carefully at putting protection for
dry stone walls in those areas where the walls are deemed to be
of high landscape and historic value, on the same basis as that
provided for hedgerows. In addition, where permission is given
for walls to be removed for good farming practice, emphasis be
placed on the recycling of that stone for the repair of existing
walls on the same property.
11. DSWA is extremely concerned over the use
of cement on long lengths of dry stone walls in many of Britain's
most scenic areas, such as the Cotswolds and Pennines.
12. The Association has received a significant
number of reports of existing dry stone walls being sold off for
financial gain. In some cases, it has been reported to DSWA that
landowners subsequently received grant aid to erect post and wire
fences along these boundaries.
13. The DSWA supports the grant aid that has
been made available for dry stone walls such as in some of the
Environmentally Sensitive Areas. Association members report there
is some increase in the lengths of dry stone walling being repaired
and improved in areas with significant levels of grant.
14. Evidence is regularly brought to our attention
that there is a considerable reduction in work in areas where
the Countryside Stewardship (England), Tir Cymen (Wales), Countryside
Premium Scheme (Scotland) is the only grant aid available. Farmers
have advised us that this type of scheme is too complex and puts
many upland-fringe farmers off applying for grant when they would
wish to repair their dry stone walls.
15. A scheme is required which allows grant
aid for walls without links to a whole-farm plan of conservation
activities. Where it is possible to grant aid specific sections
of wall quickly, to prevent deterioration, it is often more cost-effective
to have a stand-alone scheme to ensure the work is promptly carried
out.
16. The DSWA believes there is a need for a
differential payment to be made which will reflect the complexity
and stone type of the wall rebuild/repair. The Association wishes
to bring to your attention Table 4.3, ADAS Environmental, National
Survey of the State of Repair of Dry Stone Walls in England, 1995
(undertaken for the Countryside Commission).
17. The Dry Stone Walling Association receives
regular reports of unskilled labourers offering to rebuild grant-aided
dry stone walls for low prices. The Association has found over
the years, that where this occurs, the walls only stand for a
short time and DSWA craftsmen are often called in for advice and
repair. Unskilled, non-certificated wallers employed using public
funds do not provide value for money in the long term and there
is a developing time-bomb of poor quality walling which will need
extensive renovation within very few years.
18. DSWA has always supported the need for skill
training and assessment so as to ensure that dry stone walls are
rebuilt to standards that will result in repairs lasting a lifetime.
DSWA believes that public money should only be paid for work that
is carried out by certificated/qualified wallers and dykers and
that all publicly grant aided work should be fully inspected during
construction by trained, competent inspectors. The Association
has frequently offered to assist in the training and/or provision
of skilled inspectors to assist with quality control in relation
to grant-aided work.
19. The Dry Stone Walling Association requests
the committee looks in detail at the survey carried out by ADAS
Environmental, on behalf of the Countryside Commission, into the
State of Repair of Dry Stone Walls in England (report by William
Little, David Askew and Tim Mason, May 1995). This report contains
a great deal of valuable information that does not appear to be
widely available. The Association was intimately involved in establishing
the condition categories that could be applied to all walling
types, and in training the surveyors to recognise these condition
categories. It was in developing these category conditions that
the Association identified the need for an additional category
to record those mapped walls of which there was no longer any
trace. We understand there was a regular need to use this category
throughout the survey process. This category was not listed in
the report, as it did not come within the terms of reference of
state of repair. The Association would urge that similar
surveys should be carried out to provide comparative data for
Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
RESPONSIBILITIES
OF DETR:
(a) Encourage replacement of walls along stretches of road
and motorway where these are appropriate.
(b) Emphasis on replacement of proper dry stone built retaining
walls rather than use of Gabion baskets or precast sections of
"look-alike dry stone walling".
(c) Need to impress upon contractors that cheap is rarely
best and with dry stone walling in particular, the emphasis must
be on standards high enough to ensure minimum maintenance is required
for generations to come.
(d) Advise local authorities of the effects of digging trenches
for services (cables, etc.) close to base of dry stone walls which
results in a loosening of the soil and movement of the wall foundations,
resulting in the collapse of sections of the wall towards the
road.
FURTHER
EVIDENCE
The Dry Stone Walling Association, being the
only organisation devoted to the craft and also being representative
of the majority of those actively engaged in the craft throughout
Britain, would be happy to attend in order to answer questions,
or to provide further information in writing.
