High Peak Moors Vision and Plan

The next 50 years and beyond

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 3

Summary 4

Glossary 8

Foreword 9

1 Our vision 10

2 Why do this? 14

3 The guiding framework 16

4 Timeline 18

5 Historic and working landscapes 19

6 Access and recreation 26

7 Wildlife and conservation 31

8 Carbon, water and climate change 38

9 Specificsuggestionsforfurtherconsideration or action 40

10 Appendix 1: Current policy, guidance, initiatives and relevant partnerships 42

11 Appendix 2: Land capability 44

12 Appendix 3: A potted history of the moors 47

13 Appendix 4: Consultees 49

Contents

4 The National Trust

Summary

The Vision

To take the best from our shared inheritance, understanding and skills to create an inspirational 21st-century moorland landscape of restored and healthy natural habitats.

The area will be a model for future upland moorland and moorland fringe management that delivers excellent landscape- scale conservation and restoration; is rich in wildlife and cultural heritage; and provides excellent access, sustainable livelihoods and wider public benefits.

Management of the area will be based on constructive, forward- looking partnerships with tenants, communities, organisations and users.

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 5

The Guiding Framework

This Vision and Plan is informed by national and local policies and objectives, from the National Trust (for example ‘Our land; for ever for everyone’), partners, as well as Government (e.g. Natural Environment White Paper) and the growing recognition of the importance of upland land management for carbon storage, water quality and water regulation. In the Peak District, ten ‘Guiding Principles for Land Management’ have been created by the National Trust to deliver these objectives and steer future land management so that it produces the widest possible public benefit in a sustainable way.

Why do this?

The last 20 years have seen huge and ongoing changes in the way the Peak District moors are managed and restored and we’ve made significant progress. Most of the current land management agreements for these moors ended in 2013. We have a real opportunity to look at this area as a whole landscape and develop people’s relationships with the land.

So now is the time to review the work that has taken place, take account of current circumstances and new priorities and explore what further changes are needed to take forward the management of these fragile and rare habitats. We are doing this in consultation with the many people who value and have an interest in these moors as part of our aim that everyone should feel like a member of the Trust.

Sheffield

Bamford

Glossop

Edale

Chapel-en-le-Frith

Stockport

Oldham

Manchester

Hayfield

Penistone

Stocksbridge

BuxtonMacclesfieldChesterfield

Barnsley

PEAK DISTRICTNATIONAL PARK

A628

A624

A57Kinder

Snake

Derwent

High Peak Moors project area

6 The National Trust

What’s happened so far?

The High Peak Moors Vision and Plan Project started in October 2011. Initial consultation with National Trust tenants was followed by four Public ‘Your Moors, Your Ideas’ workshops, which 250 people attended. People were also able to give us their ideas via the website. Over 950 comments were received which fed into the production of a draft plan which went out for public consultation in October 2012. Over 430 comments were received on the draft plan. We have also consulted and taken advice from a range of organisations and experts representing a wide variety of interests. These comments and opinions have been taken into account in producing this final plan and our standalone summary document - ‘Our Vision for the High Peak Moors’. We intend to keep the proposals in this document under review and will change our plans in the light of ongoing consultation, further experience and information.

Blocking gullies with small dams to trap water and reduce peat erosion.

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 7

Some key elements of the vision and plan

From all the inputs received, we have proposed a range of outcomes and actions that we think will achieve our vision. We think the following are particularly important as they highlight some of the main things we value or need to change:

People being inspired The National Trust manages the moors for ever, for

everyone. Close to some of England’s largest cities, the moors provide an exciting outdoor experience to thousands of people each year. We want to help people from a wider range of backgrounds to enjoy the moors and ensure that all users have an inspirational visit

People looking after the land The moors are a working landscape shaped by man’s activity

and provide a living for members of the local community. The National Trust wants to work in partnership with local land managers who support our vision and want to help us deliver it

Vibrant wildlife, including birds of prey The moors are an amazing place for wildlife and are

protected by national and international designations. The full range of native wildlife should be present, including birds of prey, which are currently under-represented.

Generally speaking, sheep reductions achieved under the Environmentally Sensitive Area Scheme mean that grazing levels are now right for the blanket bog. However, some cloughs and slopes are over-grazed and changes in management are required to help the dwarf shrubs in these areas recover

Secure and healthy peat bogs The blanket bog is a massive carbon store which we want to

protect and enhance. We’re keen to continue the ambitious programme of work to rewet and revegetate the bog to make it a better carbon store, better for water quality, better for wildlife and more resilient to wildfire. Burning will be phased out from blanket bog, unless it is required for fire risk management

More trees and shrubs in the valleys and cloughs Over the next 25 years we would like to see native woodland

regenerate in cloughs and on valley sides. This will provide landscape and wildlife benefits, as well as helping to stabilise soils and enhance water quality

8 The National Trust

CAP Common Agricultural Policy

CROW Countryside and Rights of Way (Act)

ESA Environmentally Sensitive Area

EWGS English Woodland Grant Scheme

HLS Higher Level Stewardship

HP High Peak

Inbye Land below the moorland wall

IUCN International Union for the Conservation of Nature

MFF Moors for the Future

NE Natural England

NT National Trust

PD Peak District

PDNPA Peak District National Park Authority

RSPB Royal Society for the Protection of Birds

SAC Special Area of Conservation

SPA Special Protection Area

SSSI Site of Special Scientific Interest

UELS Upland Entry Level Scheme

Glossary

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 9

Welcome to the Vision and Plan for the High Peak Moors. This sets out the National Trust’s vision for the area, and proposes broadly how that vision can be achieved, with and for people.

The National Trust is responsible for taking care, on behalf of the nation, of some of the country’s most spectacular places and for passing these places onto future generations to enjoy. The High Peak Moors is one such place. We want to work in partnership with and support sustainable farm businesses, other land management interests and the many people, groups and organizations that share our aspiration to reconnect people with land, and, in particular, with the breathtaking and inspirational High Peak Moors. Involving tenants, partner organisations and all those who use the moors for business or pleasure, we aim to restore the landscape and habitats, provide fantastic access to a wild place, deliver better water quality and care for the carbon in these upland soils.

This plan has been produced in close consultation with a wide range of tenants, local people, users, partner organisations, experts and neighbours. We’re keen to continue to involve all who have an interest in the moors as we implement the plan.

A sister document ‘Our Vision for the High Peak Moors - the next 50 years and beyond’ can be downloaded from the project website www.high-peak-moors.co.uk or is available by phoning 01433 670368 or emailing peakdistrict@nationaltrust.org.uk. This sets out in a more generally accessible and summary form what makes the moors special, our aspiration for them, and the five key elements of the vision.

Jon Stewart General Manager, National Trust

If you have any queries about the plan or the project please contact:

Dark Peak Area Office, Edale End, Hope Valley, S33 6RFTel: 01433 670368 Email: peakdistrict@nationaltrust.org.uk

You can also get in touch via the ‘contact us’ section of our website: www.high-peak-moors.co.uk/contact-us

Foreword

10 The National Trust

1Our vision

To take the best from our shared inheritance, understanding and skills to create an inspirational 21st-century moorland landscape of restored and healthy natural habitats.

The area will be a model for future upland moorland and moorland fringe management that delivers excellent landscape-scale conservation and restoration; is rich in wildlife and cultural heritage; and provides excellent access, sustainable livelihoods andwiderpublicbenefits.

Management of the area will be based on constructive, forward-looking partnerships with tenants, communities, organisations and users.

Areas of bare peat will become vegetated again with mosses, grasses and dwarf shrubs. This wet blanket bog will soak up water like a sponge, reducing the risk of damaging flash floods and locking up carbon as new peat forms.

Artist’s impression of what future change may look like

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 11

Our vision will be characterised by the following outcomes:

Healthy habitats which help to support healthy local businesses and enhance the physical, mental and spiritual health of the wider population

A High Nature Value Farming approach, with an economically and environmentally sustainable role for farming. A variety of public benefits are delivered via farming and other land management activities, such as food, fibre, biodiversity, high quality public access and recreation and care for the landscape. The Peak District and National Trust brands enhance the value of these products

The moors are recognised for the role they play in helping sustain the surrounding upland communities and wider economy

Habitats which are more robust in the face of climate change and valuable for wildlife and people, whatever native wildlife can live on them in the future

Restored blanket bogs with a high water table and the full range of native plants and animals, including abundant Sphagnum bog- building mosses

Cloughs, valleys and slopes restored to the rich mix of habitats that once characterised these areas − heath, grass, mire, bracken, woodland and scrub

The best possible conditions for sustainable populations of the full range of native wildlife, including birds of prey

Regeneration of under-represented habitats such as woodland, wood pasture and scrub

Artist’s impression

The heather-dominated, dry peat will become wetter. This will allow sphagnum mosses, cotton grasses and other dwarf shrubs to flourish and provide better habitat for moorland wading birds and the insect food that their chicks need.

12 The National Trust

High-quality open landscape that is appreciated and cared for with adequate resources available to provide this care

Well understood archaeology, which people can access and understand and which receives the best possible protection

An appreciation of the cultural history of the moors, their place in people’s hearts, thoughts and lives. How a sense of place and of cultural identity is enshrined in the moors and their valleys and dales, along with myth, legend, local and national history

A long-term reduction in the risk of catastrophic wildfires

A landscape and a wild experience for visitors to enjoy, explore and learn about the natural environment and gain a sense of health and well-being

Responsible access where people can help care for the moors and enjoy them on their own terms

Moors which connect with and complement neighbouring moorland, the surrounding farmland, water courses and woodlands

Vegetation along water courses will become thicker with a variety of dwarf shrubs, wetland plants and scattered trees. Soils will be less prone to erosion and more tree cover will improve water quality.

Artist’s impression

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 13

These outcomes will be delivered by:

Tenancy relationships that help to deliver National Trust objectives, where we are working in a true, co-operative partnership, supporting and using each others’ skills to achieve the vision together

Traditional land management skills used and adapted to take the moors forward into the 21st century

Partnership working with local communities, organisations and individuals to the benefit of all

Landscape-scale management that looks beyond ownership and tenancy boundaries and takes into account how people and wildlife use and value the PD moors

Restoration and management that ultimately becomes low maintenance.

For images and maps illustrating our habitat vision, visit www.high-peak-moors.co.uk

If you’d prefer a paper copy of our habitat vision map then please contact the Dark Peak Area Office, Edale End, Hope Valley, S33 6RFTel: 01433 670368 Email: peakdistrict@nationaltrust.org.uk

The close-cropped bilberry will become thicker and deeper. Native trees will naturally regenerate in the valleys, supplemented by planting to create woodland of varying densities; core oak and birch woodland in the valley bottoms becoming more scattered as it feathers out up the cloughs towards the high open moor. Grazing livestock will help to keep some areas open.

Artist’s impression

14 The National Trust

2Why do this?

What makes the High Peak Moors special?

The National Trust cares for special places for people. The 10,000 ha of the High Peak Moors are special for a very wide range of reasons:

The moors are at the heart of one of the world’s most visited National Parks, which receives 10.1m visitors per year. Although only some of these people will visit the high moor tops, all will enjoy the dramatic setting that the moors provide. The Kinder massif was one of the main reasons for the designation of the UK’s first National Park

Those who have the energy to make it right out onto the moors can enjoy an amazing, wild experience only tens of miles from some of Britain’s largest cities

2.1 The moors therefore provide a fantastic “green lung” for surrounding conurbations, such as Sheffield and Manchester. They are one of the few places left locally which can evoke a sense of nature in its inspiring grandeur

The High Peak Moors have a special place in the history of public access rights. In April 1932 over 400 people participated in a mass trespass onto Kinder Scout. The trespass is widely credited with inspiring the access movement to continue the long campaign for the right to roam, leading to legislation in 1949 to establish the National Parks

The moors are large, unenclosed and an area of traditionally managed upland, with sheep farming and grouse moor management providing employment in the local community and shaping the special character of the landscape and habitats we have today

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 15

The moors have exceptional landscape quality as described in the Dark Peak National Character Area and in the PDNPA’s Landscape Character Assessment. What we see today is a result of the underlying geology, geomorphology and soils and how these, and the vegetation overlying them, have affected, and been affected by, man’s activities. A potted history can be seen in Section 12 Appendix 3

The moors have a rich and varied archaeology dating back to Mesolithic times (8000 years). There are over 800 archaeological sites on the High Peak Moors.

The moors are nationally and internationally important for their wildlife. The mixture of gritstone tors, blanket bog, upland heath, acid grassland, wet flushes and upland streams support a special mixture of plants and animals, including red grouse, golden plover, dunlin, short-eared owl, mountain hare, dwarf shrubs like heather and bilberry, and bog-building Sphagnum mosses

The moors are a massive store of carbon. In terms of the NT’s PD resource, 13 million tonnes of carbon are stored in soil. A further 50,000 tonnes of carbon are estimated to be stored in vegetation. Good stewardship of this carbon store – keeping it locked up and building – will make a significant positive contribution to combating climate change

The moors are the harvesting ground for huge amounts of public water, which drains into reservoirs managed by Severn Trent Water and United Utilities

The geology of the moors is nationally significant with gritstone outcrops, landslips and naturally eroding rivers like the River Alport.

Current opportunity

A unique opportunity has arisen to re-look at how the 10,000ha of moorland owned by the NT in the High Peak of the Peak District can best deliver NT and others’ objectives to enhance their special values.

The last 20 years have seen huge and ongo-ing changes in the way the moors are man-aged and restored and we’ve made significant progress. For the reasons listed below, 2012-13 was a great opportunity to take stock, review the work that has taken place, take account of current circumstances and new priorities and explore what further changes are needed to take forward the management of these fragile and rare habitats.

Some of the land management agreements for these moors ended in 2013

All Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) schemes on the moors ended on 30 April 2013. These have been replaced with Higher Level Stewardship (HLS) agreements which aim to deliver the proposals in this Vision and Plan and continue the impetus for moorland restoration started under the previous ESA Moorland Management Plans

The former government set a Public Service Agreement target to achieve Favourable Condition on Sites of Special Scientific Interest by 2010. The 2010 target was achieved but there is a strong push from Government, NE and within the NT to continue this momentum. Many of the habitats on the NT High Peak Moors are classed as ‘unfavourable recovering’. Further work is needed to ensure that recovery is achieved.

For the above reasons, our vision in this plan focuses primarily on the moorland habitat and its management and does not attempt to provide a detailed vision and plan for visitor experience or access development. These areas are covered at a strategic level in our visitor experience master plan which will be developed into more detailed proposals and delivered over the next 5 years.

2.2

16 The National Trust

3The guiding framework

National and local framework

The proposals in this plan are steered by and help to deliver a wide variety of strategies from inside and outside the NT. Some of the key strategies and reports are listed in Section 10. Of particular relevance is NT’s report Our land: for ever for everyone, which sets out our vision for the future of the natural environment. The report explains our approach to our key priorities of managing land in order to protect carbon, care for wildlife, safeguard water supplies and reconnect people with land.

Our goal is sustainable land management. This means meeting society’s needs today while keeping land and its resources in good condition for ever, for everyone. At the centre of our vision is the aspiration to reconnect people with land – so they can recognise its true value and have a role in caring for it.

3.1Guiding Principles for Land Management

To deliver NT strategy in the Peak District, we have developed a set of Guiding Principles for Land Management informed by Our land: for ever for everyone. Although the Guiding Principles cover the whole of the NT’s PD estate, our aim is that this Vision and Plan will deliver those principles on the High Peak Moors. The Guiding Principles (below) and the Land Capability Assessment (see Section 3.3) are the ‘lens’ through which suggestions and proposals arising from our consultation process have been viewed.

The following principles have been developed from the NT Policy for Land. In applying these principles we will endeavour to be science-, evidence- and best practice-led in our approach. We will seek to work in partnership and at a landscape scale.

We will conserve and enhance characteristic Peak District habitats and species and enable adaptation and resilience to climate change

We will protect and enhance soils as nationally important carbon stores

We will protect and enhance archaeology and the historic and cultural landscape and respect and reflect the area’s cultural history in our work

We will provide opportunities for people to be inspired and refreshed through engagement with our places, and for people to enjoy high quality access experiences in their own way and on their own terms. We will encourage visitors to understand what makes our places special and their role in conserving them

3.2

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 17

We will protect and enhance important geodiversity features

All land management such as farming and shooting will enhance delivery of our conservation objectives

We will manage on a catchment scale, including beyond our boundaries, to protect and enhance water resources

We will actively help more people from a wider range of backgrounds to experience the Peak District without damaging its special qualities

We will seek positive and valued engagement with local communities and interest groups and will seek to involve people with the delivery of our work

We will reduce our environmental footprint in our own activities and by developing and supporting appropriate local-scale initiatives.

Land capability

We’ve used the NT’s Land Capability approach as a tool to help form this Vision and Plan. It’s a way of assessing how land can be used sustainably to produce the greatest public benefit. Land can produce food, fuel, timber and other materials, provide space for development and energy generation, clean water to drink, room for floodwater, act as a carbon store, help biodiversity, and provides our landscape, cultural history, and green space for recreation and exercise.

Some types of land, of course, fulfil some functions better than others. This means making judgements about the relative importance of the different functions of any given area of land.

To make these judgements it’s important to have a clear understanding of the different natural resources of individual areas, and the constraints, risks and opportunities associated with them.

3.3

A Land Capability assessment has been applied to the High Peak Moors by a group of National Trust staff and is explained further in Section 11. In summary:

24 different current land-uses have been identified

Primary uses include carbon storage, water catchment, habitat conservation, landscape quality, recreation, historic landscape and cultural/traditional land-use

There are serious natural constraints in this moorland landscape, especially the cover of fragile peat soils

Many of the land-uses are risk-free or low-risk, but several carry greater risks

The High Peak Moors are well suited to some uses but only marginally suitable for others

Overall, the High Peak Moors are capable of supporting and suitable for continuing with the majority of the current land-uses

For the high-risk uses, management changes or mitigation are needed in order to continue within the capability of the High Peak Moors without damaging natural resources, and to work within the National Trust’s land management principles.

18 The National Trust

4Timeline

What’s happened so far?

The High Peak Moors Vision and Plan Project started in October 2011.

A full list of consultees can be viewed in Section 12.

The process has been as follows:

4.1

What next?

Drawing on the input we’ve received, and our own experiences to date of the management of the High Peak Moors, the sections below outline how we intend to approach the management of the moors in the next 50 years.

4.2

December 2011 Initial meeting with all NT moorland tenants

January 2012 and ongoing

Individual meetings with NT moorland tenants

February & March 2012

Four public Your Moors, Your Ideas workshops, which 250 people attended. They were asked what they would like to see more of, less of, changed and kept the same on the High Peak Moors, in respect of 4 key themes: • Access & Recreation • Historic & Working Landscapes • Wildlife & Conservation • Carbon, Water & Climate Change

People were also able to comment on these themes via the website. Over 950 comments were received. A summary of responses can be viewed at www.high-peak-moors.co.uk/public-consultation/

April 2012 A workshop for Moors for the Future partners. See www.moorsforthefuture.org.uk/ for more about MFF and see www.high-peak-moors.co.uk/public-consultation/ for a report of this workshop

June & July 2012 Input from the Peak District National Park Authority officers and rangers

Throughout Advice from the NT’s own regional and national advisers on agriculture, nature conservation, access and recreation and archaeology

June 2012 Views gathered from a variety of experts. See Section 13

October 2012 Draft plan put out for public consultation. Over 430 responses received. Responses analysed and discussed 2013.

Setember 2013 Final Vision and Plan launched

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 19

5Historic and working landscapes

Maintaining traditions

We recognise the importance of hill farming and grouse moor management as traditional land uses that have helped shape the moors we see today. We want to work with these land uses going forward to deliver the NT Guiding Principles for Land Management (see Section 3.2).

We want to see land management that can deliver excellent conservation and access through traditional and sustainable means. In Europe this type of approach is becoming known as High Nature Value Farming, which is recognised in the current CAP Reform proposals and is particularly relevant to the uplands.

We acknowledge that those who work the land on a daily basis have intimate and wide-ranging knowledge of the land and its management. We want to combine that expertise with our own, our other partners’ and with our aspirations for the future to create genuine and mutually beneficial partnerships for the future management of the moors.

5.1 We’re well aware that for moorland management to be sustainable, farmers need to make a living and there need to be opportunities for young farmers to gain skills, experience and an income from this work. We’re committed to working with current and future land managers who share our objectives. We believe that making a living on the High Peak Moors is about delivering a wide range of goods, one of which is livestock, but also including, for example, clean water and public access.

We recognise the benefits shooting can bring to local employment, management of some habitats and species and predator control. However, aspects of shooting management have had some negative impacts on some of the moors’ habitats, for example, the promotion of heather dominance on blanket bog through rotational burning. We’ll be working with our tenants to retain practices which contribute to favourable condition, whilst phasing out practices that do not.

20 The National Trust

New opportunities

Where new opportunities arise, we’ll support our land management partners in pursuing and making the most of these. These could include

Delivery of agri-environment capital work

Educational visits or involvement in education or recreation activities for visitors

Adding value to traditional produce from the moors

Farm diversification such as holiday accommodation, etc.

Wildlife and carbon stewardship.

Relationships and partnerships with tenants, neighbours, stakeholders and local communities

Communication with all these groups is very important and we acknowledge that this is something that we could do better sometimes. The High Peak Moors Vision and Plan Project has kick-started a greater dialogue between the NT and its tenants and stakeholders. We’re keen to maintain this momentum and look forward to ongoing constructive communication

We fully intend to continue to develop our work in community involvement and consultation. A key national objective of the NT is that “Everyone feels like a member” and engagement with local communities and users of the moors is a way of achieving this objective.

5.2

5.3

As well as talking with people about the moors, we’d like to get them actively involved in helping us to care for them. The idea of greater public involvement in the delivery of our work is something that we’re continually striving to achieve; for example, local schools could collect and grow on acorns for woodland regeneration, or visitors could help with protecting naturally regenerating trees with tree tubes.

Our Guiding Principles make it clear that we’re keen to look beyond the NT ownership boundary and work with others. We cannot guarantee that our vision will be the same as all our neighbours, who do not necessarily have the same objectives or the conservation and access purpose of the NT. However, we will seek to appreciate and acknowledge better the management objectives of our neighbours and work with them wherever we can do so without compromising our own objectives. We hope that this approach will be reciprocated.

Partnerships with statutory bodies, tenants, community groups, etc. are at the heart of what we do, and should only get stronger – especially where it’s win-win. Together we’ll be able to draw on more funds and support for our work e.g. the recent Nature Improvement Area and Catchment Restoration Fund grants, or MoorLIFE project – partnerships that, by working together, secure funds/resources that we could not attract on our own. Partnerships also foster mutual understanding and learning from others.

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 21

Grazing and feeding

The NT sees grazing livestock as integral to the long term management of the moors and is keen to see moorland and inbye working well together to the benefit of both. It’s a traditional and culturally important land use that is fundamental to moorland management and maintaining the open landscape character.

Currently the moors are grazed mainly with sheep. Monitoring suggests that the current sheep numbers, as reduced under the ESA scheme, are, in general, compatible with achieving favourable condition, but there are problems with the distribution and timing of grazing. Whilst the blanket bog in its current condition is generally adequately or even under grazed, dwarf shrubs are heavily suppressed in many cloughs.

We’re working with our tenants to produce plans to permit the recovery of dwarf shrubs and the regeneration of native trees in cloughs and valleys across the High Peak Moors. This may require fencing stock out of certain areas or removing stock in the winter. In the short term sheep won’t be entirely removed from the moors in winter but we’ll be monitoring the more vulnerable and over grazed habitats to ensure that their condition is gradually improving.

Shepherding and hefting are very important in ensuring proper use of the moors by sheep. The ability to manage stock to ensure the moors are grazed sustainably across their whole area is a key attribute we’re looking for in our farming tenant partners. We’ll work to encourage our tenants to resolve existing problems of sheep trespass, which is a significant issue in securing sustainable moorland management. Reduction or removal of grazing can create problems with trespass from adjoining moors. This will need to be considered in any proposals for changes in the grazing regime.

5.4

The NT would like to see no feeding of livestock on the moor as it contributes to localised overgrazing, damage to archaeology, soil enrichment and consequent vegetation change. We accept there may be a need to feed on rare occasions for animal health reasons, e.g. extremely harsh weather.

Use of traditional breeds and different livestock types such as cattle are ideas that we’re keen to explore with tenants. As well as the possibility of premium produce, some traditional breeds of the right type are better at foraging and producing the desired vegetation than conventional ones. We recognise that the slopes and bogs of the High Peak Moors don’t always lend themselves to widespread cattle grazing, but we’re keen to explore opportunities where they occur.

Roe and red deer are in the area already. If native deer become established on the High Peak Moors of their own accord they will be welcomed and managed as part of the grazing regime.

In general terms grazing with cattle and deer will bring greater conservation benefits than grazing with sheep alone.

22 The National Trust

Inbye

We fully recognise that the moorland is managed in association with the inbye land. The inbye land provides enclosed grassland, generally of higher agricultural productivity where stock can be contained, fodder can be produced and shelter can be provided. The moorland provides extensive grazing. However, the moors are on different and separate tenancy and agri-environment agreements from the inbye. We’ll be working with our tenants to ensure that the management of moorland and inbye are complementary. We’ve kept them separate in the Plan because they’re on separate agreements and because the moors have a particular place in people’s hearts, are CROW Access Land and are recognised and designated as internationally important for wildlife and so we want to have a more direct involvement. However, in-bye grasslands support important wildlife, such as curlew, snipe, feeding for golden plover, hay meadows for wildflowers and twite, and grassland fungi. Less intensive management of these grasslands will benefit this wildlife and is something we’d like to support our farming tenants in achieving.

5.5

Burning

(See also Section 7.7)

Managed burning:

Is a traditional grouse moor management method on these moors

Maintains the open landscape character

Favours heather habitats and associated species such as grouse

Can limit the spread of wildfire by creating fire breaks. Conversely, by drying peat and promoting heather dominance (which can increase the fuel load), managed burning can increase wildfire risk as well

Can damage archaeology if hot and burns

into soil

May impact adversely on water quality by releasing carbon, particulates and heavy metals

Should not occur on blanket bog, which is a fragile habitat, vulnerable to disturbance and drying out by burning

Exacerbates peat erosion because it exposes the soil.

For the above reasons, the NT would like to phase out managed burning from blanket bog and heather-dominated deep peat, except where required for wildfire management purposes. This is a position that other local landowners, such as United Utilities, and other organisations, such as the Countryside Council for Wales, have already adopted.

Without the cessation of burning on deep peat soils, the bog is likely to get worse in terms of habitat quality and the species that the areas can support. Phasing out burning on deep peat, along with restoring hydrology and vegetation, should see the SSSI fully recover.

We believe that burning continues to have a role in the management of dry heath and for fire risk management across the estate.

5.6

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 23

Where it can be carried out without damaging the blanket bog or archaeology/historic environment we’re keen to explore cutting as a way of trying to change heather on deep peat to a more diverse habitat (see Section 8.6 below) and to manage wildfire risk during the transition from dry to wet bog. Burning is likely to be cheaper, not limited by topography and uses less fuel. In contrast, cutting is less limited by weather, can produce brash that we can use for moorland restoration elsewhere on the estate, and results from elsewhere indicate that cutting can lead to a more diverse habitat in the long run. We and others need to continue to compare and contrast the two techniques and learn from experiences in the PD and elsewhere.

Wildfire

(See also Section 6.4)

Wildfire on the moors can have devastating effects which take decades to recover. Managing the risk of wildfire is a key objective for us. We know we can’t eliminate the risk of wildfire but will continue to actively manage it with our tenants and partners, and will continue to be ready and resourced to help fight accidental fire when it occurs on NT or neighbouring land. The recreational community have a key role to play in terms of being eyes and ears on the ground and encouraging responsible use; we’re keen to develop our relationship with them in this respect

As a priority, we’ll produce vegetation management plans which will assess and manage the risk of accidental fire as well as detailing timings and type of vegetation management.

Our aspiration is that, in the long term, fire risk can be reduced by making the peat wetter, establishing a more varied typical blanket bog vegetation and encouraging responsible behaviour. However, none of these aims can be achieved quickly and interim measures, such as more frequent firebreaks, may be required until they’re achieved.

5.7

Vehicle use

Vehicles are currently used on the moors for land management such as feeding livestock, delivering and managing grit for grouse, heather burning and moorland restoration. Vehicles are also used in emergencies such as mountain rescue or wildfire. There is also illegal vehicle use on the moors which we seek to prevent, in conjunction with the police, PDNPA and others.

Some routes used legally by vehicles across the moors have hard surfaces and are sustainable. Other routes, particularly across the blanket bog, can cause damage to the vegetation and the underlying soils. Lots of factors have an impact on whether damage is caused – the type of vehicle, its load, its tyres or tracks, the route taken, frequency of use, time of year, weather conditions and speed.

Generally speaking, there will be a rationalisation and reduction in overall use of and impact by vehicles used for moorland management. Sustainable routes will be mapped for general, everyday use. Use of these routes will be required at certain times for specific purposes, many of which will be occasional, e.g. cutting, or one-off, e.g. fencing. Such use will be considered and, if no damage is anticipated, consented on a case by case basis taking into account all the factors listed above and in consultation with Natural England where appropriate. In the past we’ve made use of flexible tracking to protect the moor if a vehicle needs to go across a sensitive area. We’ll continue to use this option where it’s the best solution.

5.8

24 The National Trust

Legal predator control

The NT recognises the importance of legal predator control for shooting and farming interests and for the conservation of ground nesting birds. We also recognise that deer and squirrel management have a role in establishing new woodlands. Control needs to be sustained and well timed to be effective.

Illegal predator control such as the killing or disturbance of birds of prey is completely unacceptable to the NT.

Archaeology

We want to ensure that the protection and enhancement of the archaeological resource and the historic landscape character of the High Peak Moors are interwoven into all of our project planning and day-to-day management. We aim to enhance our understanding of the historic landscape development of the area, whether this is through facilitated or opportunistic research.

We have full archaeological survey coverage for the High Peak Moors with archaeological surveys undertaken by the PDNPA Survey Archaeologists. All known archaeological sites are recorded on the NT’s Sites and Monument Record (NTSMR) and are regularly monitored by NT staff and volunteers. The NTSMR is a live data record with new sites added as identified and the condition of the monuments recorded. There’s potential for more thematic studies of the landscape and site specific investigations; the NT actively seeks partnerships for the undertaking of such studies.

5.9

5.10

Landscape

We regard the High Peak Moors as a managed landscape that’s been created by man’s activity and which will continue to be actively managed. However, we’re keen to see restored vegetation over a significant proportion of the area, particularly more native trees in the cloughs and more wet bog species on the blanket bog. We believe that more natural vegetation will enhance the landscape.

We will plan, design and manage the delivery of this Vision in ways that recognise the national importance of the landscape, and which protect and enhance the historic and characteristic elements of the landscape, for example through the restoration of reduced or lost components such as scrub and woodland. As far as possible, we’ll consult on our proposals before implementation.

The high quality of the landscape is a major attraction for people living, working and visiting the area. The latest employment figures show farming and land management to be significant, with the sector employing 3,500 people, which comprises 18.5% of total employment in the National Park.

5.11

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 25

Tourism helps people understand the special qualities of the National Park and is a major contributor to the economy. Tourism is worth over £356m per annum to the National Park economy, and is estimated to support around 7,000 jobs (PDNPA Management Plan).

As one of the most iconic landscapes in the Peak District, the High Peak Moors are a major factor in the scale of the benefits outlined above. The NT will continue to support the delivery of these benefits, but in ways that don’t compromise the conservation and other special qualities of the area.

We’ll monitor landscape change, taking opportunities to view and manage the High Peak Moors as part of the surrounding landscape by improving the access and habitat connections of the NT’s land to the surrounding areas, for example Severn Trent Water and Forestry Commission land in Derwent Valley. This will help improve wildlife value at an even bigger landscape scale than our own 10,000 ha and allow people to enjoy and experience the wider landscape more easily.

Funding

Part of the purpose of producing the Guiding Principles for Land Management and for having a Plan which sets out a vision for the next 50 years is so that we focus on what is truly sustainable and what will deliver our objectives, and those of partners who wish to help us achieve them. Therefore, rather than being led by grant funding or donations we will seek to lead and provide a reason for grant providers to invest in the PD.

Agri-environment payments such as ESA and HLS are made to people who look after and enhance the environment and provide public goods. We share the view that where land management activities are contributing to the provision of public benefits in a sustainable and measurable way, then public money, in the form of agri-environment scheme payments, should help to fund those activities. In the case of the NT High Peak Moors, where more than one party can contribute to the provision of public benefits, there needs to be a fair distribution of funding relating to the contribution made.

5.12

26 The National Trust

6Access and recreation

Access is at the core of the National Trust purposes

The High Peak Moors are valuable, not just for the physical access benefits they bring to all those that use them, but the spiritual connection and value that many people feel when visiting what they see as a wild landscape. We want to welcome all visitors and provide a variety of access opportunities so that people can enjoy the moors in their own way and on their own terms.

We’ll encourage and promote access. We’ll target our work in this area to sites that have the facilities or robustness to cope with more people. Our aim is for visitors to be confident in accessing the moors and responsible in their use of these areas.

When promoting access we’ll work with our tenants and other partners to ensure that we promote only sustainable routes. We’ll continue to work with representative user groups who understand the demands of particular activities and seek to expand our contacts in this area. When the NT is organising events we’ll do so in areas or along routes that will minimise damage or disturbance. We’ll continue to influence other event organisers to do likewise.

Access LandThe High Peak Moors have been classed as Access Land under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act. This means that access on foot is a legal right within the area, subject to certain restrictions. The NT welcomes and supports this right as it’s fundamentally in line with our purposes. We’ll continue to work with tenants and partner organisations such as the PDNPA to promote responsible access.

6.1 Access maintenanceTo make the moors more robust and able to cope with visitor pressure without damage, we’ve pioneered footpath repair and maintenance in this region and throughout the NT — developing solutions, like our flagged paths over peat and lift-top stiles. It’s our intention to continue this work into the future. We need to ensure that damage and disturbance are minimised through good signage, good path repair and maintenance and effective communication with visitors.

The NT strives to keep all of the access furniture and paths on NT land in good repair. It’s our intention to continue this work into the future. We’re always keen to hear from path users who have encountered a particular issue and are in a position to bring it to our attention.

We’ll seek to ensure that path repair does no more than is strictly necessary to create a sustainable surface. We acknowledge that the use of stone flags may not be pleasing to all. However, the stone flag paths have succeeded in:

Reducing the width of the path erosion

Encouraging people to stay on defined routes

Eliminating peat erosion (over time)

Reducing disturbance to ground nesting birds as people are sticking to one route rather than spreading out

Protecting archaeology.

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 27

National Trust Ranger Service

Our ranger service is focussed on being around at busy times and engaging with the public.

Staff understand the land and are outward-facing – focussed on working with people to achieve shared objectives.

Consultation responses suggested that more face-to-face contact with NT staff and more staff out on the moors would help with issues such as illegal off-road use and dogs off leads or out of control. Staff presence would also help us to share better some of the reasons the moors are so special and encourage responsible use. The issue we have here is that we have a small team of rangers covering a huge area, and much of their day to day work takes them away from being out on the moors. To address this we will:

Make greater use of volunteer patrol rangers. Our patrol rangers are doing a great job already, checking fences, access furniture and path drainage. We’d like more of them doing a wider range of work

Work better in partnership with other organisations and representative groups so that messages relating to the NT moors can be fed back to us quickly and acted upon where necessary

Make use of social media to engage with the public on a wider scale.

6.2Remoteness, wilderness and ‘honeypots’

(See also Sections 6.5 and 7.12)

Much of the High Peak Moors area is hard to get to and may be attractive only to those seeking a challenge. We’d like the moors to remain as places where you can get away from it all and enjoy the remote qualities of the area. Many people tell us that what makes the High Peak Moors special for them is the that they’re ‘wild’ places in which man-made features are fewer and harder to find than elsewhere in the countryside. So we’ll only introduce man-made features where there is an overriding management need to do so. Conversely, those seeking a more accessible outdoors experience can enjoy other moorland or upland areas in NT ownership, such as Longshaw and Mam Tor.

We’ll promote sites and routes that are sustainable and able to cope with large or increased visitor numbers. However, we can’t always guarantee what others are going to promote on NT land, so we need to work with them to ensure that promotion of access doesn’t damage the moors.

6.3

28 The National Trust

Access restrictions

The NT works with PDNPA to ensure that when open access land is closed due to high fire risk that this restriction is well-publicised and respected. We’ll continue to do so. The NT High Peak Moors aren’t closed for any other purposes. Through our education work we try to explain why fire can be so damaging on the moors, how to avoid it happening and the importance of respecting any temporary access restrictions due to high fire risk.

From time to time we may need to create temporary sanctuary areas to allow habitats to develop or species to breed successfully. The length of time a sanctuary area is in place will vary depending on need, but could be years for some habitats or just a couple of months for, say, breeding hen harriers.

When asked how they would feel about voluntary access restrictions, to allow an area to regenerate or revegetate, or to allow a species to flourish without disturbance, most of our consultees said they’d be happy with these because they felt they would be helping with the conservation of the moors, provided:

The reasons why were explained

The restrictions didn’t prevent access to key areas of interest or limit the use of popular routes

They were temporary and removed as soon as possible.

6.4

Signs and waymarkers

(See also Section 6.3)

The moors are relatively remote and wild and we need to be careful not to adversely affect these qualities with lots of signs. We’re willing to look at specific proposals for signage on an individual basis, but are wary of ‘clutter’. The concern is that if we cover the High Peak Moors with waymarkers, the sense of place will be adversely affected, particularly in remoter areas. Some people want to see no signs at all on the moors. We think there are occasions or locations where signs may still be needed but:

On the moors signs will be minimal, temporary (e.g. explaining why some moorland restoration work is taking place), discrete and in keeping with the landscape

We’ll aim to provide further information about the moors via other means such as online and will explore the use of new technology such as QR codes and smartphone apps so that people can find out more about the moors without the need for on-site signs

We’ll aim to provide information off the moors e.g. in carparks or at access points.

Access issues

Sometimes recreational access can impact on other activities on the moor, such as farming, or on some of the moors’ special features, for example disturbance to wildlife. Particular issues raised during the ‘Your Moors, Your Ideas’ workshops are detailed below.

In all instances we respect and encourage the exercise of legal rights to enjoy the moors. We have good relations with most individuals and user groups who enjoy the moors; we’ll seek to foster and develop those relationships further to widen the breadth of those we engage with and deepen understanding on both sides of what’s special about the moors and how people enjoy them.

6.5

6.6

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 29

It’s important for all users of the moors to think about how what they’re doing may impact on others and on the native wildlife and habitat. We ask that all users are respectful of the place and of each other. We’ll continue to ensure that this message of respect forms a key part of our interaction with our visitors, our tenants and our learning programme.

Night useNight time access was an issue that was raised at our ‘Your Moors, Your Ideas’ workshops as potentially problematic in terms of, for example, disturbance to residents and farmers where a path goes close to houses or disturbance to wildlife e.g. roosting birds. We’ve been working with user groups to raise awareness of potential problems and discuss how these can be avoided. It’s not our intention to deter or prevent this legitimate use but we’d like to ensure that all users of the moors can enjoy them without having a negative impact on other interests.

Dogs We fully support the CROW restriction which states that, on access land, dogs must be on a short lead between 1 March and 31 July, as dogs can cause significant disturbance to ground nesting birds, their chicks and to livestock. We need to work harder in partnership with our tenants, neighbours and partner organisations to ensure that this message is received and acted upon by all visitors to the moors.

We’ll continue to explain to dog owners the disturbance that can be caused by dogs off leads, to sheep, lambs and birds, particularly in the breeding season. We’ll also continue to erect signs asking dog owners to keep their dogs under close control.

Our public consultation provided some great ideas about:

How supportive, responsible, local dog owners can help us spread the word about the importance of keeping dogs on a lead and at the same time help us by keeping in touch about any repairs needed

Events targeted at dog owners to reinforce these messages

Providing alternative areas and routes where it is safe for dogs to have a run around off the lead.

much more prominent signs at access points re keeping dogs under close control

ensuring that signs are refreshed/replaced/changed periodically so people continue to see and act upon them. The messages need to be reiterated using as many different forms of communication as possible - signs, websites, QR codes, apps, posters in carparks, face to face discussions, guided walks, events, local shows, talks, etc.

We’ll be taking these ideas forward, with input from dog owners, as we start to implement the Vision and Plan.

Events such as sponsored walks and fell racesThe number of events taking place on and around the moors continues to increase. To ensure that these events run smoothly, are enjoyable and don’t have a negative impact on other moor users, local residents or any of the special features of the moors, we need to continue our efforts to:

Ensure that the organisers contact us well before the event so that we can help them to plan it in a place and at a time that’s best for all

Ensure that we or the organisers liaise with anyone who may be affected by the event

Ensure that all necessary permissions and consultations are in place.

30 The National Trust

Mountain bikesSome concerns were expressed about bike users riding on and damaging footpaths (as opposed to bridleways) and about increases in mountain bike numbers having a negative impact on other path users. We’d like to tackle this in 3 ways:

By communicating to riders (via various media, and probably increasingly via social media) why we don’t want them to ride on footpaths in the first place

By an increased presence of rangers and volunteer patrol rangers to talk face to face to riders who are not riding legally or responsibly

We’d like to improve options for riders so they don’t feel the need to ride on footpaths in the first place.

We are well aware that we can only achieve all of this with the help and support of the mountain bike riders themselves.

We’re always on the lookout for ways to improve the public access opportunities we can offer and will gladly look at increasing or developing mountain bike and horse riding routes where this doesn’t impact on other users, wider land management or on the special features of the moors. We’re currently consulting on extending and improving such routes on the NT’s Longshaw Estate and hope that experiences here will help inform future management of the High Peak Moors

Off-roadvehiclesOff-roaders are welcome on NT land if they’re using a route they are legally entitled to in a manner that respects other users and doesn’t cause unsustainable damage to the ground. However, on the NT High Peak Moors Vision and Plan area no such routes exist.

We’re aware that illegal off-road users are causing damage and distress to farmers, residents and other moor users. Off-roading on unauthorised routes will continue to be addressed with the police, residents, farmers and the PDNPA to stop it.

Our plan to make greater use of volunteer patrol rangers will help with this issue.

TrafficBetter/more public transport is an aspiration that the NT supports but is not in a position to deliver. We’ll continue to press for this via the PDNPA management plan and relevant Local Transport Plans.

For people to leave their cars at home there needs to be an effective alternative means of transport. We’ll continue to work with partners to encourage new ways of accessing NT land.

Education

We believe that responsible behaviour and respect is derived from people really valuing the moors. We seek to encourage this through our visitor engagement work. It’s important that visitors feel welcome and enjoy their moorland experiences. If visitors value their time spent on the moors then there’s a greater chance that they’ll care about their future. Our Visitor Experience planning looks at how we welcome and engage with visitors to the moors in a way which will benefit them and the moorland environment.

We need to continue this work and extend it, both in terms of who we’re reaching and in terms of what we’re sharing with them. We’ll continue to work with others such as PDNPA and MFF to achieve this.

The importance of places such as the Moorland Discovery Centre at Longshaw, the Moorland Centre in Edale, the National Park Centre at Castleton and other visitor ‘gateways’ into the High Peak Moors is recognised for their role in providing information and other benefits to visitors to the area. We’ll work closely with these centres to promote responsible use of the moors.

6.7

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 31

7Wildlife and conservation

Geodiversity

Geodiversity is the variety of earth materials, forms and processes that constitute and shape the Earth, either the whole or a specific part of it. Relevant materials include minerals, rocks, sediments, fossils, soils and water. Geodiversity ultimately underpins the landscape character and habitats of the High Peak Moors.

Our work needs to respect and reflect the special geodiversity of the area. Further brief details about the geological history of the moors can be found in Section 12, Appendix 3.

The High Peak Moors project area includes several nationally important Geological Conservation Review areas, as well as numerous locally important Local Geological Sites. The nationally important features include:

The fossil record at Featherbed Moss shows how vegetation has changed and peat has developed and eroded since the last ice age.

At Bull Clough Head on Howden Moors, tributaries of the river Derwent have captured some of the headwater streams of the River Little Don.

In the upper Alport Valley, waterfalls, steps and pools, cut into the bedrock, show how this river has evolved.

At Blackden Brook and Alport Castles, extensive outcrops of alternating layers of gritstone and shale show that this area was once a river delta.

One of the largest inland landslides in England produced Alport Castles.

7.1 We’ll monitor sites of geological interest on the moors that have a special designation to see whether and how general management is affecting them.

In addition, there are management activities such as tree planting, natural regeneration and gully blocking which may have an impact on geodiversity, so we’ll consult with Natural England, and the Peak District National Park Authority when we’re planning these.

Where blanket bog gully erosion is the direct or indirect result of human activity we’ll intervene to restore the bog. This may mean we are intervening with natural, background channel erosion to a degree, but as with all work on the SSSI, this will be agreed with Natural England.

32 The National Trust

Habitats and species

Our proposals for and decisions about how we manage the species and habitats of the High Peak Moors are informed by a wide variety of sources such as Natural England Integrated Site Assessments, NT Nature Conservation evaluations and one off surveys.

The NT is committed to ensuring that future management of the High Peak Moors delivers top quality habitat and sustainable populations of the full range of species that should be present on and around the moors and ultimately species such as black grouse, which have been lost. We want all moorland habitats to be in Favourable Condition (as defined by NE) and will promote management that will achieve this.

To this end we’ll continue our programme of habitat restoration work which includes:

Gully blocking to prevent further loss of peat, and to rewet the blanket bog leading to active formation of new peat

Re-vegetating bare peat by applying lime, seed and fertiliser, brash, cut heather and plug plants e.g. cotton grass.

Biodiversity monitoring

Survey data exists for many of the species and habitats on the High Peak Moors. Our aim is to continue to work with others to add to and update our records and knowledge.Monitoring is essential for the long term success of habitat recovery. We need to know that the management (e.g. grazing, burning) and capital works (e.g.gully blocking, re-vegetation, woodland establishment) are working and achieving their objectives. We know that these relatively cold, wet habitats are slow to respond, therefore it may be years or even decades before responses to change are identified.

7.2

7.3

We acknowledge that we have not adequately monitored changes in the past and therefore we intend to produce a comprehensive monitoring proposal to commence 2013.We’ve been working on a habitat baseline which will provide a snapshot of the estate (based on vegetation type and quality) in 2012. We’ll refer back to this in the future to see what changes future management has led to.

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 33

Birds of prey

At present we believe that birds of prey are under-represented on the NT HP estate.The NT is clear that bird of prey persecution is illegal and completely unacceptable. On NT land we’ll be working with tenants and their employees who share this view and are working with us to ensure that birds of prey are successful. Increases in numbers of birds of prey breeding on NT moors and sustainable populations of these species will be a management objective of future tenancies. This will need a coordinated and collaborative approach from the NT, its tenants and partners.

We already work collaboratively to protect birds of prey on our estate. We’re members of the Peak District Birds of Prey Working Group that is chaired by the Peak District National Park Authority and includes Natural England, RSPB, the Moorland Association and the NT. This group exists to get all interested parties working together to improve bird of prey numbers in the PD. The group has set targets for peregrine, merlin and short-eared owl (all species of relevance to the Special Protection Area) and are considering goshawk as well. We’ll be looking for the NT’s land to play its full part in this initiative and so our land management and that of our tenants and partners will be designed and implemented to produce increases in breeding success. We’ll also be working with raptor groups and the Peak District Birds of Prey Working Group to monitor success in these objectives.

In future we’ll continue to map and monitor habitat for ground nesting raptors. We’ll also continue to provide a hide for monitoring and viewing peregrines in the Alport Valley.

7.4A broad spectrum of native wildlife

We want to ensure that the High Peak Moors provide habitat in which the full range of native wildlife can live in sustainable numbers.

For example, we’re keen that bird populations should thrive, but we believe that good quality, robust habitat in favourable condition is the most important way to deliver sustainable populations and other environmental benefits such as good carbon storage. We recognise that other management actions such as predator control are likely to help the numbers of ground nesting birds. Research suggests that populations of some species such as golden plover are artificially high in some areas of degraded blanket bog. We would be prepared to accept local reductions in overall numbers of particular species or a change in their distribution if favourable condition of the habitat leads to this, provided the species remains viable. In any event restoration of blanket bog and areas of bare peat will increase breeding habitat for golden plovers.

We’ll enhance habitat to encourage threatened or under-represented species to thrive; for example, ring ouzel prefer valleys with sparsely scattered trees for singing and low vegetation for nesting. We aim to regenerate trees in some areas and reduce grazing pressure to create a more diverse vegetation structure. This should also benefit other species like whinchat.

Not all ‘moorland’ species rely solely on the moor for their survival and so we need to work with and enhance surrounding land to provide maximum benefits. For example, twite breed on the moors but rely on hay meadows for their food (plant seeds). The NT with its tenants manages a number of hay meadows on the moorland fringe which should benefit twite and we’ve got plans to create or restore more in the future. Sorrel is always a component of meadows that twite use for food, but sorrel-rich meadows have declined. This is something we will be looking at for targeted areas on our land.

7.5

34 The National Trust

Reintroductions

The NT supports the principle of reintroductions, but will use IUCN guidelines in its decision-making process. The basic principle is that, if the reason for a species becoming extinct has been addressed and all of a species’ ecological requirements are present, making the likely success of a reintroduction high, then there is a strong rationale for it to proceed.

We hope that, if our habitat vision is realised, then some of the reasons why species such as black grouse have been lost from the area will be addressed. We would regard a successful reintroduction of a species like black grouse to be a clear sign that our restoration of moor and moorland fringe habitats was becoming successful. The requirements of this species are indicative of a healthy upland.

Introductions of new species are less likely to be considered because of the impact on other species unless there are strong, justifiable and valid conservation reasons for doing so.

As well as reintroductions, there’s the possibility of colonisation by species moving in response to changing conditions resulting from climate change. By restoring healthy habitats we’ll optimise opportunities for these adaptations.

Heather and dwarf shrubs

(See also Section 5.6)

Heather is an essential component of the mix of dwarf shrubs on the moors (particularly in the drier areas and in the cloughs) for landscape and habitat reasons and we’ll encourage it to thrive. However, on the deep peat blanket bog habitats the NT does not wish to maximise heather cover for its own sake, but is keen to see it as part of a mosaic of wet bog species.

7.6

7.7

On the High Peak Moors much of the deep peat (more than 0.5m in depth) is relatively dry and heather dominated. Heather-dominated stands are poor in terms of species composition and habitat structure, provide high fire risk vegetation and further degrade the underlying deep peat soils. Heather cutting and rewetting can help break the cycle of heather burning, reduce fire risk, allow better recovery of bog species and act as a starting point for Sphagnum inoculation.

We’d like to make these heather dominated blanket bog areas wetter and more diverse where heather is an important component but with a wider range of dwarf shrubs and other moorland plant species present. Research and experience to date suggests that to achieve this we need to:

Cease rotational management burning

Re-wet if the areas are gullied

Cut heather and remove cut material, where this is possible without damaging soils

Reintroduce Sphagnum moss species.

These are a component of blanket bog habitat and are essential for a fully functioning blanket bog that can capture carbon. They’re the principal peat-formers. Sphagnum has the ability to retain water like a sponge and therefore has a role in flood prevention. Sphagnum provides habitat for other species. We’ll reintroduce Sphagnum to all areas of blanket bog that can sustain it, once ground conditions are suitable for its survival

Manage the accidental fire risk.

We accept that it may take a very long time (tens of years) to convert heather dominated blanket bog into a wetter, more diverse habitat. This is one of the reasons why the timescale for this Vision and Plan is 50 years.

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 35

Woodland expansion

The restoration of clough and valley woodlands is something that we’re keen that the Vision and Plan will deliver. Woodland was once widespread in the moorland cloughs and is under-represented on the High Peak Moors in terms of habitats that are natural to the area. The hill-slopes leading up to the blanket bog edges would once have been wooded, providing soil stability. Woodland has a role in new carbon storage. We’ve started planning and will implement some of the proposals as soon as possible. This is because the trees and shrubs will take a long time to establish but can start to provide habitat and landscape benefits very quickly.

New woodlands will have the following characteristics:

Species native to the area to maximise wildlife and landscape benefits

Achieved by natural regeneration, where possible, supplemented with planting where necessary

Trees of varying densities from woodland to thinly scattered trees

7.8 Some woodlands will be extensively grazed once established. Some may be left ungrazed to benefit ground flora

New woodland creation will respect the open nature of the landscape generally and will focus on cloughs

New woodlands will blend in with the surrounding landscape with no hard edges and tree cover becoming more scattered further up the hill

Issues to consider include:

Creating new woodlands or areas of scattered trees is likely to require some new fencing

We won’t seek to regenerate woodland on blanket bog as this would dry it out, whereas our aim is to make it wetter

If woodland cover is increased it shouldn’t: • result in the loss of existing species due

to excessive shading• obscure or adversely affect areas of

important geological interest • lead to damage/loss of integrity of

the historic environment as natural regeneration and planting can significantly impact on archaeology

The open landscapes and vistas of the

moors should be retained, so there shouldn’t generally be trees on the open moor tops (which, if successfully re-wetted, wouldn’t occur anyway)

Increased woodland may bring with it

increased fire risk which would require an appropriate risk management strategy

An increase in woodland area will reduce

the grazing area available and could interfere with grazing management

If deer or grey squirrel become more

common in the area this will impact on tree regeneration methods and proposals will need to take this into account.

All woodland proposals will be discussed with all those who have an interest in managing the moors.

36 The National Trust

Bracken

Bracken is part of the moorland mosaic and can have value for wildlife such as whinchats and stonechats and, further south, butterfly species. With climate change, the value of bracken may increase as species move north colonising this area. Where bracken is, or forms part of, valuable wildlife habitat it won’t be controlled. However, we’re aware that some valuable moorland and grazing habitat is being lost to bracken, particularly in and on the edges of cloughs and valleys. It can also be a problem when establishing woodland. Bracken can be hugely damaging to archaeological/historic environment features – care needs to be taken to ensure that all known archaeological features are not encroached upon by bracken and that, where this has occurred, measures are taken to limit damage (via spraying, etc). We’d like some brackeny cloughs to become clough woodland with native trees because we believe that bracken indicates that they were woodland in the past. Turning bracken areas into woodland checks overall bracken growth and removes the need for expensive spraying.

Elsewhere bracken control work is limited by:

The legal requirement for buffer strips adjacent to watercourses where the use of herbicide is excluded and the difficulty of terrain for ground application

The uncertain future of the chemical used to control bracken (Asulam), which is currently generally unavailable and being submitted for re-approval

Heavy numbers of sheep in sheltered areas, which can prevent the regrowth of desirable vegetation once bracken has been sprayed. This can only be stopped by fencing if sheep are present

The removal of bracken on steep slopes, even without grazing, can lead to the erosion of soils.

We’ll continue to work with NE to find solutions for effective bracken control on our moors.

7.9Fences for habitat restoration

Our starting point is that moorlands are open landscapes so we’d prefer not to see fences. However, fences are a necessary management tool in certain circumstances. Fencing out restoration areas is an approach that has been adopted on various parts of the High Peak Moors e.g. on the Heys in the Derwent Valley, on Bleaklow and with the erection of the new Kinder fence. It’s a technique we’ll continue to adopt where appropriate, but we’re keen to explore alternatives with our tenants as fences are costly, require maintenance and alter the open and unenclosed nature of the moors. Wherever an area is fenced out for restoration purposes we stress that people are not excluded and we aim to provide enough stiles to make the area accessible. In all cases we will:

Keep fencing to a minimum

Site it so that its impact in the landscape, on those working on or visiting the moors or on wildlife is kept to a minimum

Make it clear that fences aren’t there to limit access by people

Provide enough good quality stiles and gates so that public access can still be enjoyed

Remove the fences when they’re no longer required. How long this is will be very dependent on a wide range of factors such as altitude, soil type, aspect, type of restoration treatment, etc.

Provide information about why the fence is being erected.

7.10

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 37

Invasive species

Non-native invasive species will be controlled and, where feasible, be eradicated because they compete with and often replace native species and, in extreme cases, can completely change a habitat.

We’re keen to eradicate rhododendron from the moors as it’s non-native, invasive and damaging to natural habitat. We’d like to provide alternative cover and shelter for e.g. native birds in the form of native shrubs and trees in cloughs.

Non-intervention

(See also Section 6.3)

This is where land is left unmanaged and nature allowed to run its course.

Some of the woodland restoration areas proposed in the Vision and Plan will be allowing nature to take its course on a small scale, but, for several reasons, we’re not sure this a good idea on a large scale at this time.

The moorlands of the High Peak are semi-natural, being a product of human intervention, with cultural, historical and social importance

Some areas of the high moors would continue to erode and degrade if we stopped all intervention, whilst others might be subject to unacceptably high risk of wild fire if no vegetation was removed by burning, cutting or grazing

The moors help to provide a livelihood for members of the local community. Under present land management regimes and grant structures, their income would suffer if the re-wilding option were pursued

7.11

7.12

Some parts of the moors would be likely to develop in a way that would be unacceptable given current Government and EC requirements for statutory conservation designations for blanket bog and upland heath. For example, for these to be classed as being in ‘Favourable Condition’ they can’t have too many trees on them.

It may be that, in the future, re-wilding, or at least, lower intensity management for the moors becomes an option, but the following would need to be in place before we pursued this option.

An understanding of the implications for other interests especially farming and grouse shooting

Society (and thus public grants) value different outputs such as carbon capture

Moors have been restored to the extent that habitat loss has stopped and habitat quality can be maintained with less intervention. In particular restoring the hydrology of the moors (by e.g. gully blocking) is likely to be key to achieving this

An understanding of the impact of the lower intensity management on designated conservation features and the landscape.

38 The National Trust

8Carbon, water and climate change

Peat conservation

The Peak District moors are very important for carbon storage and emissions. Peat is by far the biggest carbon store on the moors. We would like to capture and care for carbon by:

Restoring peatlands including re-vegetation of bare ground and minimising peat erosion (see below)

Encouraging peatlands with high water tables to facilitate active peat growth

Keeping the blanket bog free of trees and shrubs (which can reduce carbon store by up to 13% in 25yrs) whilst still regenerating trees in valleys and cloughs

Ensuring heathlands, grasslands and bog are maintained for their wide variety of long-lived, well-rooted, woody and tough perennial species

Replacing conifers with broadleaves to sink more carbon

Planning and budgeting for the monitoring and maintenance of existing moorland restoration work.

The loss of vegetation from the peat soils of the moors makes them vulnerable to erosion by weather and direct physical damage by walking, livestock and vehicles. It also dries the peat, making it more easily eroded by wind and more readily oxidised, releasing the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide in the process. Re-vegetating peat helps to stabilise it, makes it wetter and reduces the contribution it makes to climate change.

8.1 Vegetation such as Sphagnum mosses on blanket bogs decays and produces more peat, storing carbon in the process. If the vegetation growing on the peat soil is overgrazed or burned frequently, this reduces the size of its roots, because less stem and leaf requires fewer nutrients and less water. Smaller roots mean the soil is not bound as tightly making it more vulnerable to erosion.

Climate change

Future changes to the climate are uncertain but what’s known is that naturally functioning soils and healthy and diverse habitats are better able to respond to changes in the climate and we should be working to achieve them.

Much of the British countryside is heavily improved for agriculture and therefore favours species that thrive on improved land. By striving for naturally functioning soils and healthy and diverse habitats, we’ll be ensuring that an upland niche of unimproved, nutrient-poor soils is still available for plants and animals to occupy, particularly species that would be out-competed in more improved habitats. If some current species die out in this area as a result of climate change then this niche will still exist for others to move in.

Decisions on whether to try to conserve certain species in the face of climate change will always be informed by the best evidence available at the time.

8.2

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 39

Water

The bogs are the harvesting ground for public water supplies and water from the moors drains directly into drinking water reservoirs. By enhancing the condition of the moors we’ll improve water quality and supply.

The water that is in and on the High Peak Moors is essential to their very nature and to the plant and animals they support. The bulk of the High Peak Moors are bog and a healthy bog is a wet bog.

Re-wetting the blanket bog areas of the High Peak moors has been described by experts as “the most important action of all”. It will ultimately:

Restore the hydrology of the moors and prevent further deterioration

Provide resilience both in respect of conserving habitats (and associated species) and the potential impacts of climate change

Enhance biodiversity

Restore the upland landscape

Prevent or reduce succession to scrub and woodland

Capture carbon by reducing the oxidation of dry peat and encouraging the growth of peat-forming vegetation

Increase the abundance of cranefly and other damp peat-dependent invertebrates, e.g. midges, crucial for many moorland bird species

Create pools to benefit dunlin, golden plover and snipe

Preserve archaeology

Reduce wildfire risk

Encourage the “reactivation” of peat formation by providing conditions in which bog-building Sphagnum mosses thrive

8.3

Increase the success of peat re-vegetation (re-vegetated peat has a higher water table than bare peat)

Reverse the impacts of drainage and drying as drivers of erosion

Therefore we aim to make the bogs on the moors active, building and wetter by:

Raising the water table by gully blocking

Re-vegetating bare peat to stop it drying out

Phasing out rotational burning on deep peat as burning makes the peat drier

Reintroducing Sphagnum which holds water and builds peat

Encouraging natural pools to form.

We recognise that making the bogs wetter will have an impact on access. Therefore we’ll make information available about our restoration work to facilitate route planning, and will consider desire lines along with ecological objectives when planning this work. We expect visitors to the moors will be equipped and seek up to date information about where they’re going.

40 The National Trust

9Specific suggestions for further consideration

The ‘Your Moors Your Ideas’ public consultation and the consultation on the draft plan produced some interesting suggestions, some of which we know we want to take forward, but need more time to develop, and some of which we need to consider further before we’re in a position to develop them into firm plans. However, we’re keen that key suggestions are not lost or forgotten, hence them being recorded here.

Regular meetings between PDNPA, NT, moorland grazing and shooting tenants and representatives of user groups to discuss access issues and ideas

Integrated path network to link existing routes and create circular routes

Visitor code of practice

Mountain bikers’ code of practice

Night time use – how to promote best practice messages. There’s been some recent discussion with user groups about this. We’ll continue to work together on this topic.

Fire risk management / moorland vegetation management plans

Removing conifer regeneration from moors (hand pulling, cutting)

Many respondents to the draft plan wanted to be kept involved via some kind of digital method, be that email, Facebook, online newsletter, online discussion forum, website, etc. Some people also wanted to be involved directly either as part of a focus or steering group, a friends group or as a volunteer. Some people wanted an annual public update meeting.

Online information sheets

Greater use of apps and smartphone technology

Use of QR codes

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 41

Educating people about the sensitivities of certain areas and encouraging them to use alternatives. Suggestion of a voluntary access restriction on Kinder plateau (or at least making people aware of the damage their feet may be causing). Full consultation with all

Historical information about old workings or routes across the area – but do this without on-site signs on the moors

Archaeological and historic landscape information for moorland tenants

More regular contact with neighbouring moorland owners to discuss work proposals

More NT presence at organised events and recognition or input from those that organise the events and participate in them

Public involvement in wildlife surveys

More circular routes for riders and cyclists

More motorbike barriers

Rangers being more available and contactable in the evening and at weekends

‘Associate ranger’ status awarded to locals and tenants who do daily work on the estate and are identified by branded clothing or something similar. Role could also include advising and educating the public and promoting NT.

More volunteer patrol rangers

NT-employed gamekeepers. Our intention is to work with our tenants and their employees in the first instance. This is an option we may consider in the future

Engage tenants and local contractors in delivering moorland restoration and potential woodland expansion works. We’re planning to do more on this in 2013 and beyond

Secure bike parking areas

Seek significant resources to undertake much more large scale moorland restoration over the entire estate.

Work with neighbours to realise a larger landscape scale project for benefit of wildlife and people, especially of woodland, and ensure connectivity and habitat compatibility across boundaries.

Family- and dog-friendly event to promote responsible dog management on the moors/ dogs on leads

Locations/zones where dogs can run freely without causing disturbance (these are likely to be away from the moors but we can signpost people to them)

Responsible dog owners to help NT promote dogs on leads to other visitors to the moors - ‘ambassadors’

Publicity events re birds of prey. Responsibly organised publicity / viewing opportunities, e.g. nest cameras, guided walks, talks and educational visits

Seek for the High Peak Moors to be an internationally accredited Dark Skies area.

42 The National Trust

10Appendix 1: Current policy and guidance which has informed our planning

NT national and local land management principles

1 Our national approach to managing land as set out in ‘Our land: for ever, for everyone’ (2010)

2 Our emerging approach to Land Capability Assessment (see Section 3.3 and 11)

3 Our Peak District Property Business Plan 2011-14

Government policy and guidance on the uplands

1 The Commission for Rural Communities Upland report, ‘High Ground, High Potential’

2 The Government’s Natural Environment White Paper including its emphasis on landscape scale restoration of biodiversity in response to the Lawton Review – Making Space for Nature and link to the new national Biodiversity Strategy – see below

3 A step change in understanding and guidance on the economic values of ecosystems and biodiversity as set out in the UK National Ecosystem Assessment

10.1

10.2

4 Development of the Ecosystem Services approach. In particular the recognition of the importance of upland land management for carbon storage, water quality and water regulation. Also the explicit recognition in the new national Biodiversity Strategy ‘Biodiversity 2020: A strategy for England’s wildlife and ecosystem services’

5 Defra Upland Policy including the 2010 Review

6 Natural England guidance on Secure Environmental Futures encompassing ecosystem services and supporting Mapping values: the vital nature of our uplands – an atlas linking environment and people

7 The European Landscape Convention and its expression in England.

8 Emerging Government policy and approach to the management and expansion of woodland in the uplands. Includes UK Biodiversity Action Plan targets for upland oakwood and birchwood

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 43

Local policy, guidance, initiatives and relevant partnerships 1 Dark Peak National Character Area Profile

2 PDNPA Management Plan – currently under review including its stronger emphasis on land manager roles. Also related strategies on recreation, biodiversity, landscape character etc.

3 Higher Level Stewardship (HLS) Target Area Statement for the Peak District and Derwent Valley Target Area

4 Moors for the Future Clough Woodlands Initiative

5 Rights of Way Improvement Plans (RoWIP) for Derbyshire and Sheffield

6 West Derbyshire and High Peak Greenway Strategy 2008

7 Peak District Local Access Forum

8 Peak District Birds of Prey Working Group

9 Eastern Moors Partnership

10 Sheffield Moors Partnership

10.3

44 The National Trust

11Appendix 2: Land capability

Land Capability identifies physical constraints on land-uses. The more constraints there are, the fewer the land-use options. The system was developed by the Soil Survey in the 1960s and underpins the Agricultural Land grading still in use today. The NT’s Land Capability Assessment aims to expand the traditional approach to all the NT’s functions of land, not just agriculture, and to expand the constraints from purely physical ones to legal and other obligations.

We’ve used the NT’s Land Capability approach as a tool to help form this Vision and Plan. It’s a way of assessing how land can be used sustainably to produce the greatest public benefit. Land can produce food, fuel, timber and other materials, provide space for development and energy generation, clean water to drink, room for floodwater, acts as a carbon store, help biodiversity, and provides our landscape, cultural history, and green space for recreation and exercise.

We therefore need to think carefully about how land should best be used to deliver the most public benefit, protect precious natural resources, and enable land managers to make a living – in essence, how we can manage our land more sustainably.

It’s important to recognise that all land fulfils most of these functions all of the time. Land management decisions, therefore, should not be a matter of deciding which one of these things we want any particular piece of land to do, but about how we can find the best use, which respects them all.

Some types of land, of course, fulfil some functions better than others. This means making judgements about the relative importance of the different functions of any

given area of land.

To make these judgements it’s important to have a clear understanding of the different natural resources of individual areas, and the constraints, risks and opportunities associated with them.

A group of National Trust staff familiar with the moors worked through the following process:

1 Identify the functions of land and land-uses provided by the High Peak Moors

2 Identify the physical, legal and other constraints on land-uses

3 Identify risks and vulnerabilities associated with each function, e.g. soil and peat erosion, compaction, damage to archaeological sites, damage to habitats, prevention of natural processes (bog growth), impact on access routes and disturbance to species. Assess whether risk is high, moderate, low or nil

4 Discuss possible mitigation of risks

5 Based on the information in point 2, agree suitability for each function of land

6 Using above information, assess Land Capability. Land will be capable of supporting a land-use if the physical and other constraints allow, and if the risks are low or in practice mitigable.

The Land Capability process is based upon professional judgement and best available information.

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 45

The High Peak Moors Land Capability process has identified 24 different current functions of land, under the headings below.

Functions of land Currently

Production

Food (livestock – sheep,beef)

Biofuel

Timber

Fibre (wool)

Minerals (stone)

Construction

Wild / managed game (grouse)

Wild / managed fish

Water services

Surface water catchment

Groundwater recharge (yet to assess) ?

Flood (river / reservoir flood) management

Flood (flash flood) management

Hydropower

Carbon storage

Carbon storage in soil

Carbon capture/storage in vegetation

GHG reduction / climate regulation

Biodiversity and geodiversity

Habitats

Key species

Natural processes – bog growth; natural rivers etc.

Geo. feature – mass movement, peat erosion, mineralogy, etc.

Genetic diversity

Landscape and cultural history

Landscape quality

Archaeological record

Designed landscapes

Historic landscapes and cultural & traditional land use

History of access

Inspiration for art and literature

Recreation, inspiration and experience

Physical access

Challenge and adventure; including remoteness

Contact with nature

Spiritual refreshment

Virtual access (‘My Farm’ type / websites etc.)

Visitor services (paths, stiles, etc.)

Space for development Buildings, e.g. bunk houses

46 The National Trust

The primary functions are:

Water services – surface water from the catchment for drinking

Carbon storage in soil (peat)

Habitat and species conservation

Landscape quality

Archaeological record

Historic landscape and cultural/traditional land-use

A suite of access-related functions (physical access, challenge & adventure, contact with nature, spiritual refreshment and provision of visitor services).

Suitability for some selected functions of land on the High Peak Moors has been assessed. A function or land-use can be well-suited, moderately suited, marginally suited or unsuited. As noted earlier, this assessment largely rests on the physical characteristics of the land, as significantly modified by management and condition.

ConclusionOverall the High Peak Moors are a fragile and vulnerable environment for land-use, due to the altitude, rainfall, acid bedrock and the peat and other fragile organic soils.

The High Peak Moors are capable and suitable for continuing with the majority of the current land-uses.

Those that are particularly well suited to this land, with minimal risk, are carbon storage in soils, habitat conservation, landscape quality, and archaeological and cultural history. Many of the more passive access- or culturally-associated uses will also, not surprisingly, be particularly well suited and risk-free (e.g. contact with nature, spiritual refreshment and inspiration for art or literature).

No current function is totally unsuited, but seven current uses are only marginally or moderately suited, and/or have associated risks. For three of these, changes are needed in order to continue without damaging natural resources, and to work within the NT’s land management principles.

Risks are associated with grouse moor management, in its current form, on the peat soils. Degradation is likely to continue unless practices change. Management on mineral soils carries fewer risks and risks can be mitigated, if this is practicable. Overall, change to less intensive use would make this a low-risk use.

Sheep-grazing is also associated with many current risks at current intensity. Mitigation is by extensification and careful management of stocking and grazing seasons.

Access and access events, while being well suited to the land, are high-risk at current levels, and continued mitigation and management are needed, again, especially on the fragile peat soils.

Other land-uses are very suitable but change is required for these to reach their potential. For example, surface water catchment cannot reach its potential until the peatland gullying is repaired, burning management is modified and woodland is restored. Carbon storage in vegetation would be maximised by creating more woodland, although current heath and bog vegetation is of value. Climate regulation, like surface water management, can only be effective when gullying and erosion are well controlled.

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 47

12Appendix 3: A potted history of the moors

GeologyOver 360 million years ago the land that is now the Peak District lay near the Equator, forming a coral reef under a shallow subterranean sea. Around 330 million years ago, the area became a vast river delta. Here, Millstone Grit was formed from deposits of coarse sand, and shale was formed from finer grained sand and mud. A tropical forest grew in the swamps behind the delta and debris from dead plants was compressed over time to produce seams of coal. Later, underground movement caused the area to bulge upwards into a dome-like shape. The upper layers of the dome were gradually worn away, and in the Dark Peak area, the Millstone Grit was left exposed on the surface in the form of gritstone edges and tors.

Gradually England moved north to its present position. Over the last two million years large ice sheets and glaciers advanced and retreated as the climate cooled and warmed, rounding the rocky outcrops and deepening the valleys, and the ground was frozen or covered in ice for intervals during much of this time. The landforms now present in the High Peak Moors were created by processes of freezing, thawing and river erosion, as well as mass movement on steeper slopes which produced landslips of various types and sizes. About 10,000 years ago the last remaining ice sheets retreated.

Today the dark Millstone Grit is covered with a layer of peat and together they give the Dark Peak its name.

Trees, peat and moorland vegetationPollen records and tree stumps buried in the peat provide a fascinating record of past vegetation, and indicate that the High Peak Moors were once much more wooded that they are today. As the ice withdrew, soil formed and the land gradually became revegetated with plants such as dwarf birch, juniper, thrift and buttercup.

During the Mesolithic period (10,000 - 4,000 years ago), more plant species spread to the area and by 7,000 years ago the valleys, slopes and even parts of the high moorland were covered with woodland. Alder, lime and possibly ash grew on the valley bottoms; pine and oak on the valley sides; birch, hazel and willow on the edges of the moorland plateau with scrubby birch and hazel above 500 metres. About 7,000 years ago the climate became wetter and peat began to spread on the flatter moorland areas. Peat is formed in waterlogged conditions where layers of plant material build up more quickly than they can decay - this tends to happen in areas with a cool climate and high rainfall such as uplands. One of the most important plants for peat formation is Sphagnum moss. About 5,000 years ago, peat began to spread downslope and engulf oak and birch growing on the margins. By the end of the Mesolithic the blanket peat cover was at a similar extent to what it is today. About 4,000 years ago, the climate warmed again, and the peat began to dry out, allowing pine and birch to grow on shallow peat. There may also have been a reduction in burning around this time.

48 The National Trust

Grazing and burningStone tools found below the peat show that the high moorlands were used for hunting and gathering by Mesolithic hunters, and charcoal remains indicate they used fire to prevent the spread of scrub and control the movement of herds of wild animals. Upland vegetation would have been grazed by animals such as red deer.

From 5,000 years ago Neolithic farmers cleared lowland forests for cultivation and grazing domesticated animals. The high moorlands were probably not widely settled until the Bronze Age, about 4,000 years ago. In some places such as on Derwent and Bamford Moors, settlement took place on gritstone shelves.

During Roman times, about 2,000 years ago, settlement was mainly in the valleys. A Roman road crossed the moors, linking forts at Brough and Glossop via Doctor’s Gate. Woodland clearance continued into the Dark Ages, and peat erosion began on Kinder plateau.

Farming, grouse and the current landscapeThe landscape began to take on its current form during the Medieval period. Cooler wetter conditions in the 12th and 13th centuries encouraged Sphagnum to regrow and healed some erosion. Between the 12th and 17th centuries new farmsteads were formed extending into moorland, land was enclosed, and sheep farming increased. A network of packhorse routes was created linking valley communities. Peat, heather and bracken were cut for fuel, bedding, roofing and fodder. Millstones were quarried from the gritstone outcrops

Increased temperatures in the 16th and 17th centuries reduced Sphagnum growth and the water table. There was still significant scrub on the hillslopes. Massive woodland and scrub clearance occurred to make way for grazing, including on the moorland tops.

During the 18th and 19th centuries further moorland was enclosed, often by stone walls or drains. Grouse shooting and wild upland scenery became popular. Management of the moors for grouse-shooting and sheep became more significant in the 19th and 20th centuries and encouraged the growth of heather. The moorland vegetation suffered from pollution from nearby industrial towns and cities and together with artificial drainage, burning and grazing this resulted in increased erosion of the peat, and plants such as Sphagnum, heather, bilberry and crowberry declined.

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan 49

13Appendix 4: Consultees

The following were asked for specific opinions on their area of expertise:

Dr Tim Allott, Manchester University – water

Prof. Penny Anderson – wildlife

Forestry Commission

Prof. Hanley (RELU), Stirling University – agriculture and upland economics

Richard Lindsay, UEL – Blanket Bog management

Julia McMorrow, Manchester University – wildfire

Moors for the Future partners

Natural England

Peak District National Park Authority Officers and Rangers

Nicholas Pearson – landscape

Dr Mark Reed (RELU), Aberdeen University – agriculture and upland economics

Prof. Ian Rotherham, Sheffield Hallam University – cultural history

Royal Society for the Protection of Birds

Prof. Nick Sotherton, Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust

Dr Fred Worrall, Durham University – carbon

Dr Derek Yalden, Manchester University – wildlife

NT Rural Enterprise Panel

NT Natural Environment Panel

Members or representatives of the following organisations were invited to contribute to the Vision and Plan via the ‘Your Moors, Your Ideas’ workshops or via the website:

British Association for Shooting and Conservation

British Mountaineering Council

Countryside Alliance

Dark Peak Fell Runners

Derbyshire Amphibian and Reptile Group

Derbyshire County Council

Derbyshire Ornithological Society

Derbyshire RIGS

Derbyshire Soaring Club

Derbyshire Wildlife Trust

Derwent Valley Orienteers

East Moors Riding Association

Eastern Moors Partnership

English Heritage

Environment Agency

Fell Runners Association

Forestry Commission

Friends of the Peak District

Geoconservation Staffordshire

Green Lane Association

Hope Valley Riding Club

Hunter Archaeological Society

Hurst and Chunal shoot

Kier Asset Partnership Services

50 The National Trust

Kinder and High Peak Advisory Committee

Matlock Tuesday Cyclists

Moorland Association

Moors for the Future

Mosaic

Natural England

National Farmers’ Union

National Sheep Association

National Trust High Peak Moors tenants

National Trust High Peak Moors neighbours

Parish Councils

Peak District Footpath Association

Peak District Local Access Forum

Peak District Mountain Rescue Organisation

Peak District National Park Authority Fire Operations Group

Peak District National Park Authority Upland Hydrology Group

Peak District Raptor Monitoring Group

Pennine Foxhounds

Ramblers Association

Ride Sheffield

Ride The Peak

Royal Society for the Protection of Birds

Search and Rescue Dogs Association

Severn Trent Water

Sheffield Aeromodellers

Sheffield Area Geology Trust

Sheffield Bird Study group

Sheffield City Council

Sheffield Local Access Forum

Sheffield U3A

Sheffield University

Sheffield Wildlife Trust

Sorby Breck Ringing Group

Sorby Invertebrate Group

Sorby Natural History Society

South Peak Geology Field Group

South Peak Raptor Study Group

South Yorkshire Orienteers

Steel Valley Project

Sustrans

Tenant Farmers Association

The Bike Tree

Totley Fell Runners

University of Nottingham

United Utilities

Vivat Trust

Wentworth Estate

Yorkshire Water

Yorkshire Geological Society

Youth Hostels Association

For alternative formats please email:mi.customerenquiries@nationaltrust.org.uk or call us on 01246 599430.

Photography: National Trust Images/Mark Bolton/Joe Cornish/Leo Mason/ John Millar/Myles New; National Trust/Dark Peak/Richard Bloor/ Paul Evans/Colin Greenwood/Tim Riley/Simon Wright; RSPB/Mark Hamblin; John Beatty; Chris Maguire Photo re-touching: FDA Design Ltd

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