John Muir Trust Advocacy Officer, Sheila Wren, began proceedings by hailing key pledges made in the Liberal Democrat manifesto on changing planning laws.
The proposals call for landscape scale planning, five green laws involving a nature bill, including targets for bio-diversity, clean air, water and access to green space.
Ms Wren also praised the party more generally, saying: “I would like to pay due tribute to the efforts the Liberal Democrats made in the last government, where they worked extremely hard to prioritise the environment in public policy with some success”.
The outcome of the general election, she said, had taken “us all by surprise.”
Ms Wren was critical of some of the actions of the current Government in its first 100 days in office, because of its lack of objection to both a potash mine in the Yorkshire Dales and to fracking applications in national parks and other areas of outstanding natural beauty (AONBs).
Echoing Ms Wren’s assessment, External Affairs Director for the National Trust Richard Hebditch was complimentary of the work of the Coalition government, particularly one of former Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg’s legacies on guaranteeing funding for coastal paths around the UK.
However, he raised concerns about the Government’s 25 year plan for nature, which he said was vital but was not a priority for many Conservative MPs; with a few exceptions such as Cabinet minister Oliver Letwin. The majority he said only cared “about the market”.
Mr Hebditch added that the National Trust and the Liberal Democrats shared a common goal in seeking to protect the land in the UK.
Bringing a parliamentary perspective to the meeting, Mark Williams, who has been asked by Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron to lead on campaigning for rural issues, said the fringe offered “a very good opportunity” to hear from environmental organisations about their expectations for the coming five years.
Being the MP of a rural constituency which includes 40% of the Cambrian mountain range, he stressed the importance of being able to balance “conservation & the environment with the expectations of my constituents”.
He said: “I don’t see landscapes in the abstract. I don’t see landscapes as a sterile place to visit.
“It is and has to be a living countryside. In that context my constituents have as much right to affordable housing, workplaces that sustain local jobs, access to renewable energy technologies and access to communications”.
Mr Williams went onto explain that whilst his area would not be affected by fracking, he was concerned about exploratory oil and gas drilling in Cardigan Bay.
Championing his party’s manifesto, he added that it was time for a Nature Act to put the natural capital committee on a statutory footing with natural capital targets, with a focus on landscape scale planning.
Moving the discussion onto renewable energy, Sonia Dunlop from the Solar Trade Association said: “Landscapes can be used to produce food, combat climate change and to keep land in agricultural production.
“Solar farms can also be used as a haven for wildlife – conserving biodiversity and re-wilding the land.
“What is the alternative? We need electricity – if you don’t like solar farms wait until you see fracking. The alternatives are coal power or nuclear power.”
The challenge for the industry, she asserted, was to produce zero carbon electricity at scale.
Further challenges were identified by Stephen Joseph from the Campaign for Better Transport, who said the UK’s rural coastline was being threatened by new roads programmes on the south coast, in Wales and in the Peak District.
Mr Joseph added that he was glad that the Liberal Democrats had always been supporters of sustainable transport and was clear that these new road proposals did not represent that concept.
He also suggested that all new housing developments must be considered properly alongside transport planning and delivered at the same time, which would reduce emissions and road traffic.