A local man who bought a 4x4 vehicle and drove it to the top of the Island’s second highest peak, damaging an extensive area of heathland, has been fined £1,000.
Benjamin Long pleaded guilty to driving an overweight vehicle on a greenway road and driving a vehicle elsewhere, other than on a highway, at Douglas courthouse on Thursday.
A joint investigation carried out by the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture (DEFA) and Isle of Man Constabulary was launched after a walker photographed the Land Rover near the top of Slieu Froeaghane in June 2020.
Investigations found the vehicle had damaged an extensive area of heathland that provides important habitat for several endangered species including Red Grouse and Hen Harrier.
Mr Long admitted driving his newly bought vehicle on the Greenway and the hillside as he wanted to test it off road. He was fined £500 for each charge, given three penalty points and ordered to pay costs.
Geoffrey Boot MHK, Minister for DEFA, said:
‘The Isle of Man is a special place and deserves the very best environmental protection.
‘These types of offences are notoriously difficult to detect and prosecute and I hope this substantial fine sends out a message that these types of incidents are taken very seriously.
‘One of the Department’s key functions is to ensure our important natural habitats are properly managed and effectively conserved for future generations.’
There are many miles of ancient ‘unmade roads’ in the Isle of Man. They are rights of way through the countryside, not just for pedestrians but also for other classes of traffic including 4x4s, motorcycles, mountain bikes and horses.
These unmade roads are knows as green lanes but some of them are classified as Greenway Roads on which vehicles are restricted.
The Isle of Man Government has a Green Lane Code of Conduct that can be found online.
