The National Trust turns 130 this year, and it’s going all out to mark the occasion. The conservation charity has unveiled big ‘moonshot’ plans to restore 250,000 hectares of new nature-rich landscape. That’s one and a half times the size of Greater London and 10 times the amount of landscape it has restored over the last decade, by the way.
The proposals include both the Trust’s own land and other plots across England, Wales and Northern Ireland, responding to the ‘catastrophic decline in nature’ within the UK.
Work would focus on restoring peatland, improving the quality of the water in rivers and reconnecting landscapes. Spanning ten years, it would involve working in partnership with environmental organisations, farmers, landowners and local communities.
Restoring more peatland would apparently reduce flood risk to thousands of homes and create a habitat for one billion earthworms (vital members of our society).
Hilary McGrady, director general at the Trust, said: ‘For 130 years, the National Trust has responded to the crises and challenges of the time. Today, nature is declining before our eyes and climate change is threatening homes and habitats on a colossal scale.
‘We will ramp up our work to restore nature, both on our own land and beyond our boundaries.We’ll work to end inequality of access to green space and cultural heritage. And we will inspire millions more people to take action to protect the things we all need to thrive.’
Among other anniversary initiatives, the National Trust is inviting people to ‘adopt’ plots of land at six ‘nature super sites’ such as the Peak District, Eryri (Snowdonia) in north Wales and Divis and the Black Mountain in Northern Ireland.
More from the National Trust
The National Trust works hard to protect and promote beloved green spaces and historic properties all over the country. Following the illegal felling of Sycamore Gap, it’s distributing ‘trees of hope’ across the country, has opened this medieval castle tower for the first time and has overseen loads of amazing rewilding projects, such as these cranes in Cambridgeshire.
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