Green Recovery funding awarded to National Parks, but more is needed
It's good to see some of our National Parks included in the Green Recovery Challenge Fund's second round announcement this week, following on from the first round in which the YHA-led Generation Green project received funding to work with National Parks.
This time, beneficiaries included New Forest National Park Authority, Dartmoor National Park Authority, Lake District National Park, Lake District Foundation and Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust, covering a range of projects. You can read the full list here.
While we welcome this project-based funding, National Park Authorities still need consistent multi-year funding settlements to play a leading role in a Green Recovery. It’s one of the key recommendations in our recent National Parks and the Climate Emergency report which we've shared with the relevant Government departments.
New Welsh Government appointments for tackling climate change
Following on from the Welsh elections in May, a number of significant new Senedd Cymru appointments have been made:
Julie James MS has been appointed Minister for Climate Change - with responsibility for National Parks
Llyr Gruffydd MS appointed as Chair of the Climate Change, Environment and Infrastructure Committee
We are already in touch with those leaders and other members and look forward to working with them to ensure that Welsh National Parks are supported to play a leading role in the Green Recovery in Wales.
Photo: Snowdonia National Park by Gareth Mon, runner up in one of our photography competitions
Latest Government planning announcements - a mixed bag for National Parks
We welcome the inclusion of wording which highlights the importance of protecting the settings of National Parks; it was omitted from the initial draft and is something we've been calling for for some time. It now states that: 'The scale and extent of development within all these designated areas should be limited, while development within their setting should be sensitively located and designed to avoid or minimise adverse impacts on the designated areas.'
However, we were disappointed to see that the Government has chosen to include a weaker form of wording, adding 'or minimise'. Despite significant opposition from us and the majority of consultees, it is also pressing ahead with changes which will limit National Park Authorities' ability to control the use of permitted development rights for change of use from commercial to residential, potentially leading to the loss of retail and employment spaces to housing.
We will continue to work with the National Park Societies and other partners and engage with politicians and the wider public to ensure our National Parks are better protected.
Take action for hedgerows - nature's key workers
We have joined CPRE and others to highlight the importance of hedgerows and ask the Government to commit to planting more.
Expanding our hedgerow network will provide a natural solution to climate change while revitalising our landscapes, including National Parks. It will create new lifelines for bees, hedgehogs, dormice and other wildlife, while linking existing, currently fragmented habitats.
Join us in calling on the Government to step up action for hedgerows by signing the petition today.
CNP Chief Executive discusses rewilding National Parks on popular podcast
Our Chief Executive Anita Konrad appeared alongside Rewilding Britain's Guy Shrubsole on a recent Planet Pod podcast in which they discussed the rewilding of National Parks.
During the 40-minute 'National Parks SOS' podcast, Anita spoke about the complex land-management situation in National Parks in England and Wales and the range of different types of landscapes we see across the different National Parks. She said: ‘Rewilding is a very specific form of land management...it doesn’t just consist of leaving nature to do its thing.’
This month's Volunteer of the Month is another runner up from our Park Protector Awards 2021 Volunteer of the Year category - David Bream.
Since joining as Voluntary Ranger in North York Moors National Park seven years ago, David has gone on to become a Task Day Leader and Trainer, leading other Volunteers and Associate Groups and training other Task Day Leaders.
He also volunteers with Riverfly monitoring, Peat Depth mapping, Ancient Tree surveying and Dark Sky mapping and recently became a mentor working with the newly formed Youth Council. "I am particularly pleased to be involved with this last group as I believe we need to engage young people to ensure our future and understand what they wish to see as priorities." said David, "The importance of National Parks cannot be understated, I believe we need these areas to provide sanctuary from the hustle and bustle of urban life."
David continued: "If someone had said to me ten years ago that my volunteering role would play such a big, challenging and varied part of my life I would have never believed them. I have met and continue to meet knowledgeable and greatly enthusiastic people both amongst the permanent staff, volunteers and general public. I find this aspect immensely inspiring and motivational. I would say to anyone thinking of volunteering for any of the National Parks, “Don’t hesitate, there is something for everyone and a welcome for all”.
Latest blog...
Our brilliant Friend and blogger Sue Cassell contributed our latest comprehensive blog post on exploring National Parks without a car. It's full of ideas for bus trips, train journeys and more and covers every National Park in the UK.
The blog captures some of our key campaign themes including accessibility, sustainability and inspiring people to love and care for National Parks. You can read the full blog here.
Photo: Coastal bus by Exmoor National Park Authority
