The Dartmoor landscape is to be given ‘new life to its wilderness’ in an effort to restore nature and protect it from climate change. The ‘Vision’, convened by the Duchy of Cornwall and the Central Dartmoor Landscape Recovery Project, will bring together dozens of collaborators and proposes new approaches to grazing, biodiversity, conservation and hydrological restoration and is part of the largest project of its kind in the UK.
‘Dartmoor is a magnificent and complex ecosystem — the balance between nature and people has evolved for thousands of years to shape the landscape we recognise today,’ the Prince of Wales writes in the foreword to the Vision. ‘To keep Dartmoor special, we must respond to the twin challenges of global warming and the requirement to restore nature, while ensuring the communities on Dartmoor can thrive.’
Three key areas of focus have been identified by the Duchy of Cornwall. Firstly, closer, practical partnerships between landowners, farmers and wildlife teams will aim to foster collaboration and mutual respect in what has historically been a contested landscape. Second, a holistic strategy to address Dartmoor’s priority habitat challenges, which will see investment in peatland restoration and upland mosaic habitats. Finally, agri-environment schemes at the catchment level will connect river headwaters with their onward journey to the sea.
It’s hoped these three pillars will help realise and deliver on the principles set out in the Vision. While specific to Dartmoor, they lay out a foundation for other UK wide environmental management plans.
‘The Dartmoor Vision shows us what might be possible and how that might be achieved,’ adds the Prince of Wales, who is also the Duke of Cornwall. ‘It is bold and ambitious and something that I hope, by working together, can be delivered for not just the current generation but for generations to come.’
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