Friends of the Dales and 47 other environmental and recreation organisations have signed a letter prepared by our colleagues at Campaign for National Parks, calling on the Government to accept amendments to the Levelling Up Bill for greater nature protection in National Parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in England. This latest call comes … Read more
Access to, in and around the Yorkshire Dales for all, no matter where a person lives or their mobility should be available to everyone. Yet, for many reasons, progress in resolving some of physical and cultural barriers that exist continues to be problematic. Our own policy, entitled Countryside Access states that people have a right … Read more
The Government’s recent announcement (threat!) to amend or scrap crucial environmental laws protecting the UK’s most vulnerable wildlife and green places affects all of us. If they come to fruition, the removal of such protections will not only directly and adversely affect nature but will potentially strangle plans for improved carbon capture, compromise food security and … Read more
Our sell out 2022 conference debating the true health of our UK rivers, with a special emphasis on the River Wharfe, is now available to view online. Six dedicated films feature the key highlights and takeaways for each of our guest speakers: Prof Rick Battarbee, Emeritus professor of environmental change at University College London and … Read more
We were delighted to join an alliance of National Park Societies and campaigning organisations, including Campaign for National Parks (CNP) in a joint Declaration, calling on governments in England and Wales to give Protected Landscapes (National Parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty) their full backing in legislation. The statement was agreed at the National … Read more
A simple enough question and one which some of Yorkshire’s best environmental campaigners debated at our successful September 2022 conference… With drought, hosepipe bans and the large-scale discharge of sewage making the headlines for much of the summer, our conference debating the health of our country’s rivers, with a special emphasis on the River Wharfe, … Read more
The Devonshire Institute, Grassington, BD23 5AZ Free admission – booking essential – email Victoria Benn, stating the number of tickets you require. From peat to paddling – what constitutes a healthy river? Want to debate or discover what can and should be done to improve the health of our rivers? Then please join us and … Read more
Friends of the Dales welcomes the decision by Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority to publish all comments received in response to planning applications on its official Citizen Portal planning website. Wilf Fenten, Deputy Chair of Friends of the Dales said “We have been lobbying for our comments, and those of other interested parties who are … Read more
In the week that ‘peatbog’ won gold at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, our Peatlands campaign #MoorPeat went live. Kicking off the launch was a digital talk by Jenny Sharman from Yorkshire Peat Partnership (YPP) who returned to tell us the story of the restoration of three Yorkshire Dales moors that are close to her … Read more
It’s great to see the Government take on board much of our collective input, as put forward on behalf of all the national park societies by the Campaign for National Parks (CNP) to help shape the recent and long awaited Landscapes Review. But, without legislation to underpin the ambition, the proposals fall short of what … Read more