Relationships & Connections (AQA A Level Geography)

Figure 4a shows a tweet about a protest in Grasmere, a village located in the Lake District National Park.

Figure 4b shows a news report about the protest in Grasmere.

Figures 4a

A tweet about a protest in Grasmere, a village located in the Lake District National Park

Figure 4b

A news report about the protest in Grasmere

Protesters to mass at Grasmere ‘to save beauty of the Lakes’

Earlier this month more than 200 people gathered in the village of Grasmere to object to plans by Lowther Estate, which owns the lake, to moor 10 holiday yachts on its shores. Proposals include allowing holidaymakers to stay on the boats overnight, accommodating up to six people for a week, and allowing them to freely navigate Grasmere.

Local people say commercialisation will destroy the beauty and tranquillity of the national park for future generations. The lake is overlooked by Dove Cottage – home of William Wordsworth – who described Grasmere as “the loveliest spot that man hath ever found”.

Andy Astle, 62, a retired Royal Mail manager who has lived in the village for almost five decades, and Joe Nichols, also a local resident, said they had been forced to act to protect the national park as a public space and save its heritage.
Nichols said he expected thousands of people to join the protest. He said, “Over the last two years Lowther Estate have desperately tried to exploit the land for commercial gain at the expense of the environment.” He added: “We can no longer tolerate the constant attempted abuse of areas which should be protected by those who own them.”

David Bliss, chief executive of Lowther Estate, argues that the yachts do not constitute a new development. “The first thing is that they are definitely not houseboats and they already exist on Windermere, Ullswater and Derwentwater, and the second is that they are not detrimental to the area. They will complement other boats already used in Grasmere,” he said.

[6]

With reference to your distant place, critically assess this statement.

[20]

Figure 3a shows qualitative data measuring personal well-being across selected inner London boroughs.

Figure 3b shows average income of employed residents in each selected borough.

Figure 3a

Figure 3b