Northern Devon Nature Improvement Area
A shared vision for landscape-scale management of the local environment
The Northern Devon NIA is one of 12 nationally important landscape scale wildlife schemes across England, identified by Defra in 2012.
Restoring and re-creating wildlife rich landscape
Devon Wildlife Trust leads the NIA partnership programme within the North Devon UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, with 13 organisations actively involved together with local farmers, landowners and communities.
The NIA aims to restore and re-create a wildlife-rich landscape across the internationally important river Torridge catchment, and to develop stronger links between environment, economy and local communities. This is a very rural area with small mixed farms, intensive dairy units, conifer plantations and tiny settlements.
The Torridge catchment holds 35% of the UK’s remaining Culm grassland, 120 scheduled plants and animals, and important populations of two of Europe’s ten most threatened species – the marsh fritillary butterfly and the freshwater pearl mussel. Our aim is to bring together grassland, woodland, hedgerow, river and other land management into a more integrated and connected approach to the landscape.
What’s happened so far?
Our Northern Devon Nature Improvement Area programme may have a long name, but its achievements are lengthy too! Originally established in 2012 as one of 12 Nature Improvement Areas nationally, its second phase began in 2015 and is now nearing completion.
Listen to local farmers talk about how farming and wildlife can work well together, to the benefit of both, in our short film:
The first three years: 2012 - 15
In 2015 our initial Defra funding finished. The NIA partnership developed a business plan for phase 2 of the NIA programme, with ambitions for further environmental improvements and strengthening connections to the economy and local community. We have been busy developing new projects and fundraising to realise the NIA’s ambitions up to 2020 and beyond. It will take many years to achieve a sustainable, vibrant and healthy living landscape.
The Culm: a landscape that works is our most recent summary of all of the work that has been undertaken in recent years.
A summary of the research written by DWT; The Ecosystem Services provided by Culm grasslands
Current NIA project
Our new project, Northern Devon Natural Solutions (NDNS) will work with farmers and landowners to encourage them to think big and use natural solutions to create, restore and connect wild spaces for nature. Find out more below...
Past NIA projects
You can find out more about the following projects on their own dedicated below...
Ash Moor. Photo, Harry Barton
Torridge Headwaters Facilitation Project
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Freshwater Pearl Mussel Project
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Culm Grassland Natural Flood Management Project
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The River Torridge at Volehouse Moor nature reserve
The Torridge River Restoration Project
Find out moreIt’s all down to teamwork
The NIA couldn’t make any difference on the ground without the efforts of all our partners, local farmers, landowners and Torridge residents. A huge thank you to everyone involved.
North Devon Catchment Partnership
Get in touch
Northern Devon Natural Solutions is our current project working to improve freshwater and farmland for wildlife. Find out more about this project and get in touch below...
Support our work
The vital work we do for nature depends on the support of people who care about the future of Devon’s wildlife and wild places.