TOURISM and farming in the New Forest would struggle to cope with a repeat of the foot -and-mouth crisis, according to a new report.

Another major loss of commoners' livestock could see the collapse of the landscape's delicate eco-system, while a host of leisure businesses may go under if the "stay out" signs go up again to holidaymakers.

And public support for restricting visitor access to the Forest could evaporate if jobs are put at risk.

Now the New Forest Committee - which consists of local councils, the Environment Agency, Verderers and the Forestry Commission - is drawing up contingency plans which would be needed to protect the area in a similar crisis in the future.

While the foot-and-mouth virus never actually reached the New Forest during this year's epidemic, the consequences of the precautionary measures were disastrous.

Commoners were forced to take their animals off the open forest, and the poor, cramped conditions they were stranded in, combined with a shortage of fodder, meant that more than 1,500 cattle and ponies had to be destroyed.

At the same time, misleading messages about the closure of the countryside saw visitor numbers plummet and almost all hotels, guest-houses, pubs and shops suffered heavy income losses.

A spokesman for the committee, which meets tomorrow said: "A long-term drop in depastured cattle numbers could have implications for open forest habitats which require grazing to maintain their ecological integrity.

"And the tourism/recreation industry would be hard pressed to sustain another loss of income resulting from access restrictions."

The moves were broadly welcomed by all sides of the Forest community.

Richard Manley, leader of the Commoners Defence Association, said: "It would be absolutely disastrous if this situation happened again, and we must learn from the harsh lessons.

"The commoners acted responsibly, did exactly what they were told, and yet the medicine ended up killing the patient."

New Forest Tourism Association spokesman Tony Barnfield added: "Hopefully, something like this would never hit us so hard again.

"What happened this year has given us a greater understanding of all the Forest's different interests, and how important it is for us to work together."