Peter Shaw, chairman, Friends of Dartmouth Community Orchard, of Ridge Hill, Dartmouth, writes:

Stevie Rogers and Tim Trent, Chronicle, February 18, sound a warning about the steady degradation of our green ­environment. We would like to add our voice in support of the points they raise.

Applying the mentality of the ‘throwaway society’ to the environment simply doesn’t work. It is based on the assumption that we can replace instantly any discarded article with a new and better one.

Well, not with trees that are cut down, green spaces that have been built on or gardens that have been concreted over. They take time – years, decades, centuries even – to regenerate and what you get back is not necessarily better than what was there in the first place.

There is simply no substitute for protecting and managing our green spaces sensitively and appropriately, and that includes private gardens, ­farmland, woodland, moorland and the marine environment, as well as public green spaces.

The only way to protect the diversity of wildlife is to protect the diversity of habitats, ­making sure they are interlinked and managed properly. The responsibility for this sits on all our shoulders – private individuals, commercial ­operations and public bodies.

Environmental organisations can give a lead on the reserves and land they own, provide expert advice to the likes of farmers and landowners and raise the awareness to the public. However, we all must take decisions, small and large, that make a positive difference if we want to pass on to our children and grandchildren a healthy environment that is rich in biodiversity and bio-abundance.

Currently 94 people are taking that personal responsibility by signing up as members of the Friends of the Orchard.

They are undertaking to ­support the aims of the Friends, which include not only the ­protection and appropriate management of one of Dartmouth’s precious green spaces, but also of enhancing community access to it. The two aims are not ­contradictory. People using a park, walking in the wider ­countryside or sailing on the river will appreciate and value it. If they value it, they will look after it. When they casually and thoughtlessly destroy it, it shows they don’t give a damn, whether from ignorance, greed, short-­termism or selfishness.

Our environment is robust, but not indestructible, particularly at a local level. Voluntary organisations such as the Friends and Dartmouth Green Partnership are doing their bit. We need more of them, particularly in these days of constrained public budgets. How about a Friends of Longcross Cemetery, for example?

Dartmouth is treasured not just for its diverse built environment or its economic activity, but for its setting in a world-class environment of river, hills, woods, gardens and green spaces.

The interests of the first two should not automatically take precedence over the latter. There needs to be a carefully thought-through balance and a practice that reflects it.