THE NFU today warned farmers in Lancashire that they have only one more month in which to study the draft map of 'open country' and get comments back to the Countryside Agency.

The deadline for comments is February 11.

David Collier, the NFU's Regional Technical Adviser, said: "It is extremely important that farmers check that the map is correct in its description of their land. If the draft map were unchallenged and access mistakenly granted, the landowner's descendants might be regretting it for generations to come."

"At a meeting this week of NFU staff and members from throughout the area, it became clear that there are lots of errors. As well as farmland incorrectly marked on the map as moorland, for example, we heard of golf courses, private gardens and even a supermarket car park mapped for public access."

"Many farmers have attended roadshows organised by the Countryside Agency in conjunction with the NFU, but there is a danger that farmers, in lowland areas particularly, will assume that they are unaffected. They may not be."

Land covered by the map for the 'Lower Northwest' takes in the whole of Lancashire and Cheshire, the whole of the Peak District, parts of West and South Yorkshire and the southern fringe of Cumbria.

The draft map was published for public comment in mid-November by the Countryside Agency. Once the Agency has analysed comments received by February 11 it will prepare a Provisional Map, expected in June.