Join in the Bovey Balsam Bash

Come and help us to try and get rid of some of this nuisance plant that is becoming an increasing pest on Dartmoor riverbanks.

Himalyan Balsam is one of a small number of "alien plant invaders" wreaking havoc in the British countryside. It was introduced as a garden plant, but swiftly made it's escape and has been very successful at establishing flourishing colonies in the wild, especially in river valleys. As an annual plant, up to 2m high, it smothers native grasses and other plants during the growing season and then leaves the river banks  bare in the autumn and winter, increasing the risk of bank erosion.

Read more: Join in the Bovey Balsam Bash

Vision for the Uplands ? - Not Any More

Natural England appears to be rethinking its long term policy view for the English Uplands according to a recent article that appeared in Farmer's Weekly.

It was only three years ago that Natural England conducted a consultation exercise to formulate its policy for the Uplands. The resulting document, Vital Uplands A Vision for 2060 was published to mixed reactions. Farming opinion in particular criticised its overwhelming focus on environmental matters and production of food appeared to be treated more or less as a byproduct of a process to create diversified upland habitats.

Read more: Vision for the Uplands ? - Not Any More

Photovoltaic Cells on Listed Buildings

In recent the months the list of planning application has been dominated by a flood of applications to install photovoltaic cells. Most applications relate to the roofs of houses, but some also relate to ground sited arrays of panels. NP policy encourages small scale installation of renewable energy projects subject to reasonable constraints eg landscape effects, impact on water environemnts, impact on local amenity and the "quality of the environment, including the historic built environment."

Read more: Photovoltaic Cells on Listed Buildings