Ashes Pasture - (C) Dwayne Martindale
Three Dales Landscape Recovery Scheme
Landscape Recovery
Landscape Recovery is one of the three environmental land management schemes. It is a scheme is for landowners and managers who want to take a more radical and large-scale approach to producing environmental and climate goods on their land.
Landscape Recovery represents a new approach to supporting long-term, significant habitat restoration, which is essential in the climate crisis we are currently facing. There is huge potential to make a significant positive impact through Landscape Recovery projects.
22 Round One Landscape Recovery Projects began their development phase in 2023. The purpose of the development phase is for projects to prepare for delivery by putting together a series of plans, engaging with local stakeholders and agree funding arrangements.
On-the-ground work will commence in the project implementation phase, implementation agreements will be bespoke to each project and are expected to be long-term, lasting 20+ years, to deliver significant outcomes.
What is the Three Dales Project?
The Three Dales Project began development in January 2023, working with eight landowners and covering around 4200 hectares of the western Yorkshire Dales. The project is focussing on restoring the landscape for three iconic upland bird species: black grouse, curlew and ring ouzel. All have perilously low populations in this area, reflecting the fragility of their national populations.
Before the Second World War, the project area would have hosted a mosaic of upland habitats, maintained by a mix of sheep and cattle farming, with a small amount of cultivation in some areas. Governmental policy to increase livestock numbers to produce meat led to an increase in sheep grazing. Wet areas were drained, leading to the drying out of blanket bogs and the loss of structure in the vegetation, increasing the flow of water off the mountains. This furthered the decline of wildlife and many habitats changed beyond recognition.
Yorkshire Sandwort - (C) Finn Varney
As the landscape is restored we will see a wide range of wildlife spread across the landscape. As well as black grouse, curlew and ring ouzel, rare plants such as Yorkshire sandwort (Yorkshire’s only endemic plant), Teesdale violet and lady’s-slipper orchid will become common again, flown over by small pearl-bordered fritillaries and northern brown argus butterflies. Red squirrels will also move about freely as the isolated patches of woodland are reconnected.
Our vision
Our vision for the Three Dales Landscape Recovery Project is a long-term and shared commitment to nature recovery in the Yorkshire Dales uplands. Natural processes will be re-established, reducing carbon emissions from damaged peatbogs and carbon sequestration in restored peatbogs and montane scrub, woodland and other habitats, improving water quality in the river catchments and reducing the risk of flooding in downstream communities.
Project area map
