NPNL said uplands were “especially vulnerable to the effects of climate change” through rising temperatures, altered rainfall patterns, and increased frequency of extreme weather events.
Mitigation work like protecting existing woodlands and restoring carbon-rich peat soils would help safeguard upland ecosystems but also support downstream communities by “improving water quality and reducing flooding”, it said.
One of the area’s largest land managers, Raby Estates, said it worked with NPNL on wildfire prevention measures including managing its farmers’ fuel loads and providing firefighting equipment.
Duncan Peake, chief executive at Raby Estates, said drone equipment to help spot fires was a “really significant, additional tool in our wildfire control kit”.
As part of the management plan, NPNL said it was would also work with farmers who wanted to get the skills and equipment for farm visits.
Peake said farmers on their estate were already taking groups of mostly young people “who wouldn’t normally have an opportunity to come to the countryside” to help them understand how farming works.
Woodley-Stewart said: “You can’t make people come to the countryside and invest in the local economy, but you can help to create circumstances in which they feel this landscape is for everybody.”
He said the five-year plan would guide the policy of the local authorities but would not be compulsory.
“There’s no stick here, it’s all carrot,” Woodley-Stewart said, adding: “Everyone has a role to play in its implementation.”
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