First Broads Chief Executive dies
The man who breathed new life into the Broads and was instrumental in saving Halvergate Marshes, Professor Matthew Aitken Clark, OBE, has died after a short illness.
Professor Clark, aged 74, was the first Chief Executive of the Broads Authority from its inception in 1979 until 2001. When he took on the role the Broads were suffering from some of the worst serious environmental degradation to be found in Europe.
Under his leadership water quality improved, habitats were restored and lost rare wildlife returned. Boating became more environmentally friendly and the Broads have become accessible to a wider public.
In 1998 Professor Clark was awarded the OBE for his work with national park development and in 1999 the Delta D’Oro Award for European Conservation, which was won the previous year by David Bellamy.
One of Professor Clark’s critical achievements was to help save the Halvergate marshes from the plough by negotiating incentives for farmers. The setting up of the Broads Grazing Marsh Conservation Scheme in 1985 was a watershed in conservation history and paved the way for a new conservation-led incentive scheme paid by the Ministry of Agriculture, now extended nationwide and into Europe.
Another legacy was the restoration of Barton Broad between 1995 and 2001. The ambitious £3 million Clear Water 2000 project used innovation and science to breathe new life into a dying broad which is now home to rare water plants, otters and other wildlife and is one of the most popular sailing areas in the Broads. The country’s first passenger solar powered boat was commissioned by Professor Clark to give educational trips on Barton Broad and showcase environmentally friendly technology.
Professor Clark, who served under five chairs, also played a key role in restoring Mutford Lock, Broadland’s second gateway to the sea, at Oulton Broad.
Brought up near Glasgow and the oldest of four children, Professor Clark had to go out to work at an early age. He took on further study at night school and eventually graduated in architecture and regional planning.
Following practice in Cambridge and London, he moved to academic appointments in the United States and Italy. Before his appointment to the Broads Authority he was Professor and Head of Department of Urban and Regional Planning, State University, South Carolina, and visiting Professor to the Department of Metropolitan Affairs and Public Policy, Charleston, South Carolina.
When he was appointed he was the only member of staff and selected a young, lively and enthusiastic team to work with him, a few of whom still work for the Broads Authority 30 years on.
Professor Clark, whose easy charm, diplomacy and poetic turn of phrase earned him many friends was talented at building and influencing partnerships.
He was the convenor of the steering group, which helped establish the Association of Inland Navigation Authorities, and set its strategy for the future.
Over the years he became an influential figure in Europe’s protected areas. He was president of the Europarc Federation, the voice of Europe’s nature and national parks, from 1990 to 1996. He was also chairman of the European Habitats Forum, worked for ‘Parks for Life’, was an adviser to the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve Authority, a member of the World Commission for National Parks and Protected Areas of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, vice president of BTCV (British Trust for Conservation Volunteers) and Vice President of the Global Nature Fund.
In 1999 he won the Delta D’Oro Award for European Conservation. After retiring from the Broads Authority Professor Clark immersed himself in Europarc’s work, becoming chairman of the Funding Commission. In 2005 he was awarded the Europarc Federation Alfred Toepfer Medal for service to the nature and national parks of Europe.
Professor Clark was a great supporter of the iconic Broads wherries. After his retirement he became Chairman of the Wherry Yacht Charter Charitable Trust, which preserves and sails pleasure wherry ‘Hathor’, and wherry yachts ‘Norada’ and ‘Olive’, a post he retained until his death.
When he retired Professor Clark, who was inspired by Norfolk Naturalist Ted Ellis, emphasised there was still much to achieve in the Broads.
‘I think the story’s just begun,” he said. “It will take decades to restore the true magical character of this lovely wetland. But I think the potential is there to help it re-emerge. Wetlands are still the most vulnerable areas in the world. If you lose a lake you lose a whole world.’
A former chair of the Broads Authority, Lady Knollys, commented: “Aitken Clark was an outstanding chief executive and a true statesman. He leaves the Broads a rich legacy. He will be greatly missed.”
Stephen Johnson, the present Broads Authority chairman, said: “Aitken Clark was a respected and towering figure instrumental in the formation of the Broads Authority, and his arrangements for protecting this very special area set firm foundations for the work that goes on now.”
Professor Clark leaves a widow, Frances, a daughter Catriona and son Geoffrey.
A memorial service will be held at a date yet to be announced
09/04/2010
