"Each time the maps got better and in the end they had them correct, or so I have assumed, as I do not have access to my own satellite to check them."
This is a quote from a National Farmers Union blog by Richard Styles in his response to the 'mapping of Britain' by the Rural Payments Agency.
Richard is none too pleased at the undertaking to re-map his farm by the RPA and says:
"In the middle of harvest in 2003 we received our first new maps from the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) of the farm since the old County maps of nearly 100 years ago, and guess what? My new maps were all over the place and mostly wrong.
Fields missing, neighbours fields included in my farm, I seemed to have gained two extra fields, areas wrong, you name it, it was wrong.
"Not only that, but they sent them out in the middle of harvest, my maps are dated 21st August 2003 with a limited amount of time to respond if they were incorrect.
"There were quite rightly, howls of protest from the industry towards the RPA with its Rural Land Register and the RPA were chastised from all quarters."
Richard goes around in circles a little with his 'rants' at the government but he is missing a couple of points that are worth a mention.
Any farmer with Internet access can download Google Earth and survey their own ground. If there is found to be an anomaly with the data being provided by the RPA then it can be used as evidence to argue the case for amendments or corrections to be made.
Using a simple GPS locating device - which can cost as little as £50.00 these days although it might be worth spending to get the most accurate piece of kit - any person can walk out to a parcel of land, stand at any given point and record the GPS co-ordinates. On returning to Google Earth, these co-ordinates can be inputted and checked against the official maps.
Google Earth is free to download for personal use but anyone wishing to use the software for commercial gain must register a license by buying Google Earth Pro - registering will also increase the tools available.
Google Earth Pro might cost $400 but if a group of farmers chipped in then this money might just be saved several times over if you can successfully argue against inaccurate mapping by government agencies.
Google Earth Pro says that you can share information with colleagues and clients via high-resolution prints of Google Earth scenes. Empower employees with measuring tools that enable them to measure distance, area, and radius.
Click image to see detail.
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