Award winners (from the left) Dennis Martin (founders' award) and Henry Prout (conservation award) with Rachel Thomas (chairman), Pat Bawden (new secretary), Sir Antony Acland (new president) and Chris Whinney (new vice-chairman)

MAJOR changes at the top were approved of at the Exmoor Society's recent annual meeting with the election of a new president and vice-chairman.

Sir Antony Acland, a former British ambassador to Washington and now living on Exmoor, was installed as president, taking over from Victor Bonham-Carter who had died earlier in the year and had held the position for 30 years.

Christopher Whinney became vice-chairman and with four new executive members, the society was now well rooted in Exmoor and had most of the skills and knowledge needed to enable it to punch above its weight. The well attended meeting heard from Dr Stone, the national park authority chief executive, about the four challenges set out in the national park management plan. This was followed by three presentations to award winners and the morning ended with the acting headmaster of Dulverton Middle and Community School outlining the Exmoor curriculum.

Society chairman Rachel Thomas, in her report, highlighted the disastrous position faced by Exmoor's hill farmers. She said: "An exacting issue of deep concern to the society is the perilous state of hill farming. Many of us are aware of the dramatic changes to the Common Agriculture Policy but are probably less aware of their likely impact on Exmoor.

"Half of all agricultural income of Exmoor farms comes from the CAP and so the changes both to the single farm payment which continues to decline and to the agri-environmental schemes are likely to hit Exmoor badly. At present 86 per cent of Exmoor farms are in an agri-environmental scheme, mainly the ESA.

"When this comes to an end, it will be more difficult in future to enter the higher level stewardship scheme that replaces the ESA and is so necessary to manage the moorland. Over the last five years farming costs have doubled and labour has declined and in the last two years over 50 per cent of Exmoor farmers have reduced cattle, and 40 per cent have reduced sheep. On top of this we now have another outbreak of FMD and a ban on livestock movements just at the time of the crucial autumn sales.

"With further changes to the hill farm allowance in the pipeline and limited alternatives of diversification, the outlook for hill livestock farming is grim and things are not getting better but worse. It is imperative that Exmoor makes a solid case for its livestock farmers and for an agri-environmental scheme that fits its circumstances.

"The society needs to begin a campaign with other voluntary bodies and particularly with the Dartmoor Preservation Association in order that the hill farming voice from the voluntary sector can be heard at a national as well as at a local level."

In the afternoon the society was entertained by the public launch of "Tracks and Traces" an environmental play performed by the professional group The Common Players.

The play gave a light-hearted romp through five decades of Exmoor's history as a national park that was interweaved with serious challenges such as the problems of moorland loss through scrubbing up, hill farming difficulties, the impact of climate change and the need for eternal vigilance in protecting the moor.

Closing the meeting, Sir Antony Acland said: "Congratulations to the new society secretary, Pat Bawden, for such an interesting and successful annual meeting and I look forward to next year when the society will be celebrating its 50th anniversary."

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