West Pennine Moors to be restored for nature and people

Darwen Tower, Winter Hill, Rivington Pike; these iconic landmarks provide the backdrop to so many of our everyday lives and activities. Now Lancashire Wildlife Trust along with United Utilities and a host of other partners have come together to develop a Landscape Recovery Scheme which will aim to rejuvenate almost 7,000 hectares (27 square miles) of this wonderful landscape, allowing nature to flourish whilst supporting the people who live, work, farm and visit the area.

A new short film has been created to help people know what’s going on. Featuring staff from the Wildlife Trust and United Utilities, along with a local farmer, artist and walker, the film aims to show people why the West Pennine Moors are so special, the challenges they face, and hopes to inspire people to get involved and support the Landscape Recovery Scheme.

The West Pennine Moors Landscape Recovery Scheme:

7,000 hectares (27 square miles) will be rejuvenated for nature and people
The area contains 34 per cent of Lancashire's blanket bog, 185 priority species of local concern for conservation, covers a substantial part of the West Pennine Moors Site of Special Scientific Interest, and is noted for key isolated populations of twite, brown hare and adder
1 million people live in and around the West Pennine Moors

West Pennine Moors LRS - full film (https://youtu.be/GPpX9h_79Tg)

The West Pennine Moors Landscape Recovery Scheme

Nabil Abbas from Lancashire Wildlife Trust said: “The West Pennine Moors Landscape Recovery Scheme aims to bring together stakeholders including government agencies, charities, farmers, landowners, residents and visitors to develop a long-term plan for how to care for this amazing place.

“Over the years numerous pressures on the landscape have combined to threaten the natural habitats and species which live there. However, by working in partnership and developing landscape-scale proposals, the Landscape Recovery Scheme aims to restore and rejuvenate the landscape so that it can provide us with a series of ecosystem service benefits: more wildlife, clean drinking water, carbon storage, sustainable farming businesses, and a place where people can spend time enjoying the great outdoors and improving health and wellbeing.”

View of woodland with a the sun shining through the trees and Rivington reservoir in the background

Andy Ryding, United Utilities Catchment Partnership Project Officer, said: “The Landscape Recovery scheme is a vital partnership that brings together so many key stakeholders to work together, to better enhance the natural environment, to support our farming tenancies and benefit our surrounding communities.

“For our part, improving the catchment land around our reservoirs not only helps improve the biodiversity of the area, but crucially improves raw water quality which reduces treatment costs for our valued customers.”

The Landscape Recovery Scheme is currently in its development phase, so partners are working together to map and understand the myriad of different habitats, land uses and challenges in the West Pennine Moors, before developing plans to rejuvenate the area. With such a variety of habitats and land uses there cannot be a one-size-fits-all approach, and so engaging with key stakeholders and local communities will be vital to create an appropriate and realistic vision for the landscape.

A series of public events and activities will be held over the spring and summer to give people the opportunity to learn more about the project and have their say on what the landscape means to them.