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This had been discussed previously in the Greenlaning section, but now I think I'll bring it to the attention of the wider audience here in the bar ;)The scheme being run jointly between the Countryside Council for Wales, and Ceredigion, Carmarthenshire, and Powys County Councils has made it onto the BBC news site. Seems some of the generic negativity is being given the chance to come through in the article, as is the norm for the BBC. I'm surprised they haven't gone as far as to specifically say "illegal Land Rover use"."There has previously not been a strategic approach to the use of motorised recreational vehicles in the Cambrian Mountains, and therefore route maintenance and enforcement has been dealt with in an ad hoc way by Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Powys county councils."That, at least as far as Ceredigion goes, means they've done precisely !Expletive Deleted! all to maintain routes. The article seems to be putting much more of a negative spin on the whole thing than the actual initial meetings did. The meetings had the feel that the aim was if anything to increase our access to the countryside. That article reads as though it's to keep us all under control.
Dear Sir/Madam,Complaint regarding the article about 4x4s in the Cambrian Mountains (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/mid/7014013.stm).I am writing to lodge a complaint about the article regarding the Cambrian Mountains Pilot Scheme in Mid Wales. The article, as is the usual with the BBC, has managed to put a very negative spin onto what is actually supposed to be a scheme that is beneficial to all.The article reads as though the majority of current off-road vehicular access in the area is currently illegal, which is far from the case. The scheme has been put in place to try to open up more of the countryside to vehicular access, but at the same time ensuring that sensitive, unsustainable routes are protected. It will ensure that all permissible routes are correctly maintained, through a combination of council and volunteer work groups.I was present at the Ceredigion meeting, and can say that most of the user groups involved in the discussion were, by the end of the meeting, much more open to the idea than they were at the start. Our main obstacle which we had to overcome was our image of mud-loving buffoons who want nothing more than to get our vehicles stuck axle-deep and have to winch ourselves out, whilst doing as much damage as possible to both our vehicles and the countryside. Luckily we were able to correct those present, pointing out that we are simply out for a quiet drive out in the countryside, in areas which we otherwise wouldn't be able to access, and that when routes are susceptible to damage, for example when there is a lot of mud present after rain, we avoid thouse routes to avoid making them any worse.Once again this is another blatant anti-4x4 article from the BBC, which they have managed to produce from what is actually sizing up to be a very beneficial scheme for all involved, not just the "off-roaders". I must also stress that we prefer the term "green laners" as that is what we are doing, we do not go "off road" as they are public rights off way, and as such are actually classed as roads. Yes, there is the minority who insist on driving "off piste" and churning everything up, but I must stress that it is exactly that, a minority. And that is another issue which is due to be tackled within this pilot scheme.And as for the comments regarding "increased activity within the last few years", I must say that as a resident in the Cambrian Mountains, I find that to be nonsense. Over the last 2 to 3 years there has been a very noticeable decrease in the amount of 4x4s coming into the area, mainly due to the NERC act reducing the amount of legal routes quite considerably. This also goes to show that the majority are law abiding, not wishing to shoot themselves in the feet as it were by continuining to drive those routes.And to make my position clear, I am a local resident, a member of the Mud-Club internet group, and also a member of the Land Rover Discovery Owners Club. I also have an interest in the economic benefits as I work in a local hotel/bar.Yours Sincerely,Matthew BrownPonterwyd,Aberystwyth
Sir,I find myself writing to you once again regarding the biased, negative reporting of all things 4x4.The article identified above reports on a recent meeting with a number of stakeholders in the Cambrian Mountains in Wales. Those stakeholder groups were meeting to look at ways in which the use of the Cambrian mountains, and in particular the public rights of way can be utilised for all without impacting on sensitive sites.A member of the online group www.mud-club.co.uk attended to put the case of the responsible greenlaner. This representative (who I believe you have already heard from) reported to us prior to your article, that the meeting was so-operative and other groups there recognised that they had a distorted image of what greenlaning was.The article above gets off to an incredibly bad start by inferring in the title that up until now, driving of greenlanes has been illegal. In point of fact, we, as responsible greenlaners, drive routes that are listed as Byways Open to All Traffic, or are listed in the List of Streets. Both of these documents are definitive documents held by relevant councils and maintained by them. Where Temporary Restriction Orders have been applied, we as responsible greenlaners comply with them. The nature of your article avoids this point all together and paints responsible greenlaners as irresponsible law breakers.Your article also fails to fully explain the possible reasons for an apparent increase in use of byways in particular areas. The NERC act that came into force a little while ago decimated the number of legally available routes. As a result, the population of responsible greenlaners is spread over a much reduced set of routes, leading to a perceived increase locally.I am once again disgusted that your reporters have chosen to create a report that presents a generally negative picture. However, I am incensed that our efforts to work with other organisations, to build better understanding of responsible greenlaners has been destroyed by lazy, reporting that lies by failing to tell the full story.Incidentally, if your reports used the term "responsible greenlaners" one fifth as often as I have in this complaint, perhaps the number of complaints you receive would be reduced.Frank McGoldrick
