Farmers to be forced to clear up after their cows.
In a landmark victory, the Ramblers Association has won the right to take to court any farmer who does not clear up his herd’s cow pats from any public right of way across his land.
A spokesperson for the Association said that for far too long their members have had to put up with getting cow dung all over their rambling boots and then either being barred from quaint rural tea shops or forced to spend hours back home scraping the obnoxious stuff off their boots with one of the family’s best knives.
In future all dairy farmers who have rights of way across their land will have to purchase a `pat a scoop` from the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and as soon as they see one of their animals foul the right of way they must immediately scoop it up and place it in one of the very large but environmentally sensitive bins that DEFRA will be providing along every farmland footpath in Britain.
`This new bye law will be strictly enforced,’ a DEFRA spokesman said today. `But there will of course be an appeal process for any farmer who thinks he is being treated unfairly. Every complaint will be heard and judged on its individual merit, as long as you make it in writing, double line space, name at the top, and send it to ‘The Archers, Ambridge c/o BBC Radio 4′.’
splinter
Posted: Aug 9th, 2008 by robd
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