Archive News
2007
Cornwall AONB Conference - 19th May 2007
Most successful Penwith farms are within the AONB
Highly commended award for sustainable renovation of house
Tin and Fishes - a story of St Just
Bodmin Moor - getting the balance right
Three new members of staff have joined the AONB Unit based in Truro. Tasha Dale is the new full-time Office Manager taking over from Karen Johns who is on a year’s maternity leave. Peter Maxted comes in as part-time Communications Officer to work closely with the AONB Partnership and promote it to the wider world. June Crossland is the new part-time Planning Officer who will take a strategic role in the delivery of AONB planning policy.
STUNNING scenery, five boat trips and a Cornish cream tea were up for grabs for participants of the first ever Fal River Walk around the estuary from Falmouth to St Mawes.
This unique 14-mile walk held on October 7th 2007, aimed to raise £10,000 for Save the Children by asking all 100 volunteers to try to raise £100 each in sponsorship.
Starting at the Park and Float car park at Ponsharden at 8.30am, boats took the walkers over the Penryn River to Flushing, where the Mylor and Roseland to Porthpean section of the Cornwall AONB begins, to join the 6 mile waterside path to the Pandora Inn. A special ferry capable of landing on beaches, shuttled everyone across Restronguet Creek where the walk continued along country lanes through Feock to the Trelissick Estate.
Dropping down through Trelissick Garden, walkers boarded the King Harry Ferry over to the Roseland where they continued along the St Mawes road and creek side paths to St Just in Roseland Church. The final 2 miles followed the shoreline to St Mawes where walkers were greeted with a Cornish cream tea before catching the specially extended St Mawes Ferry service back to Ponsharden.
Sponsors of the event were Fal River Links, Penrose Outdoors, Chaffins, Cornwall Ferries, The National Trust and Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Partnership.
For further information and photographs of the walk please click here.
This year's Annual Cornwall AONB Conference was held on Saturday 19th May 2007 at the Falmouth Maritime Museum . The Conference gave delegates a chance to learn about the work of the Partnership, receiving presentations from Phil Dyke of the National Trust, Tim Light of the King Harry Ferry/ Fal River Links Partnership and Roger Covey, marine specialist at Natural England. The afternoon provided delegates with an opportunity to experience the Mylor and Roseland area of the Cornwall AONB from aboard one of the ferries operating on the Carrick Roads, with interesting and stimulating discussion on marine issues and climate change, a feature of the whole day.
For more information please see relevant links for the speakers:
Paul Walton, Cornwall AONB Partnership Manager
Tim Light, King Harry Ferry / Fal River Links Partnership
MOST SUCCESSFUL PENWITH FARMS ARE IN THE AONB
Farming profits and landscape protection go hand in hand
The great majority of profitable farms in Penwith are located within the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).
This encouraging finding was part of a briefing given to the AONB Partnership recently by Rob Poole, Rural Economy Officer at Penwith Council and Ivan Annibal of Globe Regeneration. They presented the results of an economic study by Penwith District Council partly funded through the AONB Sustainable Development Fund.
These were the main conclusions of the study:
More than half the farms in Penwith and a higher proportion within the West Penwith AONB are profitable
It would appear to be a reasonable assumption that the West Penwith ESA schemes (see below) have had a major impact on the profitability of farms
Those farms which have an element of or a principal focus on horticulture seem to be most profitable
Those farms which have also diversified into tourism appear to be more profitable than those concentrating just on other activities
Those farms which have a tourism component and are based in the AONB appear to be doing particularly well.
Much of the AONB is also an Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) where emphasis is placed on maintaining and enhancing the landscape and protecting its wildlife and historic interest. Farmers have the key role in this protection and enhancement process. Twenty years ago the landscape was under serious threat from agricultural intensification on the one hand and bracken encroachment on the other. Grants available under ESA designation have helped to arrest and reverse the decline.
The boundaries which make up the field systems in the West Penwith AONB are amongst some of the oldest continually used boundaries not only in Britain but in the world. Many are older even than Stonehenge and originated as the New Stone Age merged into the Bronze Age some four thousand years ago. These field patterns were laid out by some of the first settled farmers in Britain. Many of the present coastal farms and hamlets are the successors to these prehistoric settlements, with the field boundaries enhanced in the medieval period, built over the original prehistoric core.
Of great concern to the AONB Partnership is that the ESA scheme, which has helped farmers over the last twenty years to adopt good practice, rebuild Cornish hedges, restore farm buildings and improve habitats for plant, animal and bird life, has now closed to new applicants and been replaced by Environmental Stewardship Schemes (ESS) which are no longer directly targeted at the West Penwith ESA. New schemes will be harder to access for local farmers and there are fears that they will not deliver the same landscape benefits.
The West Penwith ESA was one of the first agri-environment schemes established in Europe, offering incentives to encourage farmers to adopt agricultural practices which would safeguard and enhance the particularly high landscape quality of the area and its historic and wildlife value. With the introduction of the ESS in March 2005 it is feared that the new schemes will not deliver the same landscape benefits, provide the same level of financial support and – because they are no longer targetted at specific areas but have a number of objectives – the area will lose out to other priority targets. This could have a serious effect on landscape management.
The Penwith District Council economic study - “Penwith Farm and Rural Economy Balance Sheet” - highlights the importance of the agri-environment scheme in maintaining both farm income and the quality of the landscape – and the way in which this contributes to the tourism industry in the area.
In response to concerns from landscape, heritage, wildlife and farming interests, the Cornwall AONB Partnership will highlight the importance of continued support for the West Penwith ESA with Natural England.
"Twenty years of hard work by farmers and conservationists could be lost if the area loses out on agri-environment support,” said Paul Walton, Manager of the AONB Partnership. “More importantly the landscape itself could be threatened. And it is the landscape that attracts most visitors to this area and the enormous economic benefits that they bring with them."
BOSCASTLE'S CHANGING FACE
Boscastle, one of the most picturesque villages of the Pentire Point to Widemouth section of the Cornwall AONB, was devastated by a catastrophic flood on 16th August 2004. Members of the Cornwall AONB Partnership, particularly the National Trust, North Cornwall District Council and the Environment Agency have been working hard on the sympathetic restoration of damaged buildings and a new flood defence scheme.
Last autumn the National Trust was delighted to be able to hand back a fully restored and upgraded building to the Youth Hostels Association (YHA). Of the Trust’s various buildings in Boscastle, the Youth Hostel was one of the worst damaged. As owners, it was the Trust’s responsibility to repair it so that the YHA could operate from it once more. Financial support from the YHA has helped to deliver a truly excellent restored and enhanced structure. Not only has the historic character of the building been preserved, it has enabled the hostel to be brought up to the latest standards of comfort, disabled access and flood tolerance.
Nearby, just up-river, was the National Trust warden’s house. As a single-storey building very close to the water, permanent residential occupation was no longer advisable, so the National Trust shop will move from the Old Forge into this larger building at Easter. The Trust has also bought and restored both properties neighbouring the warden's house, better enabling them to preserve the historic character of the harbour area. These buildings will provide light-refreshments outlet, three small National Trust holiday apartments and most importantly a space for North Cornwall District Council's new Boscastle Visitor's Centre
The original Boscastle Visitor Centre, built and managed by NCDC was opened in May 1994 and destroyed by the flood over ten years later. Just before the flood, the AONB Partnership had funded some brand new interpretation materials for the centre including brand new display boards which are still missing at sea! A couple of months later, a portacabin was winched into its place and this has provided a temporary facility for the last two years. Even though this temporary building was small it still saw over 80,000 visitors through its doors each year.
But now the Phoenix has arisen from the ashes. The new centre is ideally situated adjacent to the harbour, acting as a focal point for visitors. It has taken 12 months to repair the building and bring it up to an adequate specification for public use but it has now had its first visitors through its doors, the first of many no doubt who will wish to make use of the fascinating and well presented information inside.
Many local people have contributed knowledge as well as artefacts to increase the breadth of interest this wonderful new centre now holds. Part of the facility will be developed as a Local History Resource room where people will be able to research the history of the village, and in particular the flood of 2004. There is a public internet access point and people will be able to obtain a wide range of books on the area, wildlife, walks and local history.
The new centre has costed in the region of £70,000 to kit out, a substantial part of which was grant aided by Objective 1. The centre will provide interest to adults and children, visitors and locals alike and it will be available all year, 7 days a week.
North Cornwall District Council and the National Trust have worked together to move their visitor centre from the car park which importantly frees up land at the heart of the flood plain. This has allowed a greater degree of flood tolerance to be achieved within the Environment Agency’s flood defence scheme. This scheme will have an impact on the final layout of the car park and the river banks all the way to the harbour. Sadly it also means that the iconic lower bridge has to be demolished and replaced with an alternative that is designed to integrate with the flood defence scheme, yet remain sympathetic to its surroundings. The first phase of construction work on this scheme began this winter and runs through to the spring. Working with the Environment Agency the Trust will focus on ensuring the historic and natural appearance of the area is restored as much as possible.
Since the flood of 2004, a special strategy to reduce the risk of trees being washed down the River Valency in Boscastle, in the event of a severe flood, has been agreed by the Environment Agency, the National Trust and other landowners.
Three years ago the unexpected floodwaters washed away trees in the Valency Valley and, although many did not reach the village, those that did joined with other debris, including cars swept from the car park, to block both the bridges in the village.
Now a programme has been agreed that will see the woody debris in the river and floodplain removed or cut up. Regular inspections will determine floodplain and bank-side trees to be felled or coppiced.
Andrew Houghton for the Environment Agency explains: “It was clear that, as well as reducing the flood risk for Boscastle with flood defences on the rivers Jordan and Valency, we also had to look at managing the trees in the Valency Valley from Newmills down to the village".
"This tree management will complement the flood defences and help reduce the problems that we saw in the 2004 flood. We will now work with the landowners to ensure the study’s recommendations are carried out.”
The initial riverbank tree coppicing was undertaken during the winter, outside of the bird-nesting season. The Valency Valley is a popular spot for walkers as well as being an important wildlife site for a variety of species. The management plan balances the vital need for flood alleviation, whilst maintaining the important wildlife habitats and ensuring that the beauty of the valley and people’s enjoyment of the area isn’t affected.
Further information available from:
The National Trust
Sabina Eberle, National Trust Communications Officer, Devon & Cornwall - Tel. 01208 265225 or email: sabina.eberle@nationaltrust.org.uk
North Cornwall District Council:
David Attwell, NCDC Countryside Officer-
Tel: 01208 893333 or email: david.attwell@ncdc.gov.uk
'HIGHLY COMMENDED' AWARD FOR SUSTAINABLE RENOVATION OF HOUSE
The National Trust has received an award in recognition of its sustainable renovation at Carleon House, Poltesco. The Trust was awarded 'Highly Commended' in the construction and renovation category. The award was presented to the Trust at the recently held National Energy Efficiency Awards, which recognise excellence in energy conservation and efficiency. The work undertaken at Carleon House, Poltesco, involved the sustainable renovation of a historic building which provides accommodation for volunteers working to conserve heritage, wildlife and the landscape of The Lizard Peninsula. The house was built in 1861 and came into the possession of the National Trust in 1991. It has been used to provide accommodation for long term volunteers since 1992.
When the Trust took over the house, it was in a very poor state of repair, and plans started to enable the renovations to take place. The project was funded by two legacies and the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) Partnerships' Sustainable Development Fund. Since its completion, the house has set a benchmark for the Trust's work to reduce the environmental impact of its own operations.
The renovation of Carleon House was planned with environmental principle at its core. The accommodation now has high levels of insulation throughout using a sustainable product - sheep's wool, a new under floor heating system driven by a ground source heat pump linked to three 55-metre deep bore holes, and a solar panel for water heating. Rainwater is also collected from the roof and is used to flush the toilets in the building. The light bulbs and appliances in the house are energy efficient and natural paints and floor finishes have been used for decoration.
Mike Hardy, assistant property manager for South West Cornwall, said: "We were delighted to receive an award and recognition at this prestigious national event, which hopefully shows how good energy efficiency both helps the environment and saves money. Climate change is a common topic today but things like improving insulation and using low energy lighting show that individual action can really help make a difference."
TIN AND FISHES - A STORY OF ST JUST
A 'Play for Voices' by Pauline Sheppard, played at venues across Cornwall during the Spring.
it was promoted by Cornwall Arts Centre Trust Charity no. 292138 and supported by Cornish Mining World Heritage Site.
Tin & Fishes is made from real memories and personal anecdotes
and with a little editing and animation by true Cornish voices, tells a simple truth about people, place and change.
Come with us to St. Just and meet Miss Procter, “You want history,
boy, we’re bloody livin' in it.” Miss Procter also knows about the
weather, “It’s a pheenomeenon up ’ere.” She used to work at Land’s
End Radio Station where knowing the weather mattered. Meet
Matthew and Lizzie Richards who got pregnant during the blackouts
of the 3 day week in the seventies. Meet their daughter Susie who
got out of Cornwall after Geevor closed in the eighties, “ id’n nuthen
left here.” Re-live David Penhaligon’s speech, “Cornwall needs
more than deck-chairs and ice-cream.” The twins from No Go By
weren’t even born then and Jim Eddy down The Miners, he stays in
the fifties with his ferrets; “had a ferret once had muscle definition
in his back legs.” Through it all, running higgledy-piggledy like tin
through granite, Matthew Richards lives in his garden shed, on the
nineteenth level, “only he never coughed so much before.”
The past becomes a foreign country much sooner than it used to do.
In the seventies there were no mobile phones, no home computers,
no colour pictures in newspapers, no cds, television closed down at
night, and the M5 was still under construction.
St. Just has changed, Cornwall has changed. Change is inevitable;
but the way change is managed is important to the lives of
communities. It’s important to remember, you have to know where
you’ve come from in order to see where you’re going.
This new and original piece of theatre was commissioned by St. Just Heritage Area Regeneration Project and the Cornish Mining World Heritage Site, and is indebted to the Geevor Oral History Project for some of the words and memories from the last three generations in St. Just.
For further information:
Karen Willows World Heritage Site Office, Historic Environment Service
Cornwall County Council
Tel: 01872 322586 email: kwillows@cornwall.gov.uk
web: www.cornish-mining.org.uk
BODMIN MOOR - GETTING THE BALANCE RIGHT
Ten thousand years ago, just after the last Ice Age, Bodmin Moor was mostly covered in forest. Like much of upland Britain, during the New Stone Age and the Bronze Age the area was gradually cleared and many settlements were built.
Today, Bodmin Moor is part of the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is a spectacular expanse of grassland and heather punctuated by high granite outcrops and strewn with boulders. Evidence of prehistoric settlements abounds and the moor is extremely important, both archaeologically and historically. In marshy hollows rivers rise and in hidden valleys ancient wild oak trees linger. Recent quarrying and much mining activity have taken place, leaving both scars and areas of great heritage interest. Part of the moor is indeed a World Heritage Site.
Though comparatively small compared with its better-known larger neighbours, Dartmoor and Exmoor, and though cut in two by the A30, nonetheless the moor retains a surprising remoteness and sense of wildness. Cornwall’s highest point, Brown Willy, commands views of both coasts.
Like other areas of the Cornwall AONB and indeed the South West Uplands as a whole, Bodmin Moor is a working, lived-in landscape facing many changes. All the moorland is privately owned but often managed by a number of farmers holding common rights (to graze animals) tied to their home farm or enclosed land. Changes include agricultural reforms, climate change and growing development pressures.
Maintenance of the landscape is closely tied to agricultural activity, especially grazing. Thirty years ago EC Axford wrote: “It is not a primeval area, for man has modified the landscape continuously for more than 4,000 years; but the changes wrought have, hitherto, been the result of a slow and gradual process enabling indigenous animals and plants to adapt themselves to gradually changing circumstances.”
Note that ‘hitherto’. Today the pressures on the moor are heavy. Overgrazing is one, while, ironically, undergrazing and subsequent bracken invasion is another. The attractive, wild and special quality of the landscape inevitably brings increased tourism. In 2006 the Cornwall Local Access Forum reported that the CROW Act had led to an ‘increase in the number of dog walkers and motorised vehicles and (that there was) a general lack of public knowledge of the status of the land. The perception of the majority of those spoken to by the police, landowners and commoners is a belief they have a right, under CROW, to do what ever they wish.’
Twelve years ago, Natural England looked at pressures on Bodmin Moor and ways in which the key physical and wildlife features of the AONB Area could be maintained and enhanced to retain its special nature. At the time it said that ‘these objectives can only be achieved if they can be put into action within a cohesive framework.’
Part of the work of the Cornwall AONB Partnership is to provide that framework. A project*, funded by the AONB via the Sustainable Development Fund, recently gave landowners and commoners – those who own and best understand the land - the opportunity to discuss how their interests could be protected while being approachable themselves and accommodating the needs and wishes of other interested parties.
Great strides have been made in terms of getting the balance right on Bodmin Moor, but much more remains to be done.
*The Bodmin Moor Development and Communications Project
