As the all await a decision by the county council on its long term protections for Cannock Chase, work has begun on the pilot scheme for conservation grazing at Moors Gorse.
The plan put forward by Staffordshire County Council attracted support from 58% of respondents to public consultation. Work was due to begin in the Spring of 2020 but was delayed due to Covid-19. Conservation grazing is a traditional method of using livestock to manage heathland habitats and has been used extensively at nature reserves in the UK by both councils and wildlife organisations.
Cannock Chase was once overrun with Bracken covering 90% of the site, inhibiting rare plants that offer greater biodiversity. While Bracken is a native plant, important for many species, the Chase should have no more than 10% coverage. Since 2006 chemical spraying has been used to control the Bracken, and while grazers won’t immediately stop the need for some spraying, and it’s likely the two practises will need to carry on in tandem for some time, but a reduction in chemicals will be something many people welcome.
Cannock Chase has been identified as suitable for conservation grazing on the basis of decades of research going back to the designation of the Chase as a Site of Specific Scientific Interest in 1951. Conservation grazing is a tried and proven method and has shown its value for managing wildlife habitats time and time again, something that has become ever more important in recent years.
“The pilot scheme gives us the chance to test how the invisible and virtual fencing works, show people how conservation grazing operates in practice and allows people to better understand what it would be like in other areas of the site. The pilot is not a test of whether grazing ‘works’ in terms of managing habitat – we already know about the benefits of grazing and it is unlikely we would see a huge impact in a short time scale.”
Staffordshire County Council.
The county council's pilot scheme is not about proving it works, it’s designed to demonstrate for the public what conservation grazing is like using docile native breeds. It is for showcasing both virtual and invisible fencing and the livestock which will be used for the wider project. The council said back in 2019 they would hold ‘meet the livestock days’, and hopefully these will still go ahead as long as Covid allows.
When grazers are eventually introduced onto other parts of the Country Park Staffordshire County Council reported:
“The scheme would include compartments so that large parts of the site would be un-grazed at any time so that people can avoid cattle if they wish, along with an information system to let people know where the cattle are at any time so that if they wish to avoid them they can. Appropriate gates for rights of way and well used paths will be provided to ensure the site remains fully accessible”.
Conservation grazing has been shown to deliver a number of benefits, these include grazing animals eating dominant plant species by preference, creating space for more rare plant species to thrive. The disturbance created by the livestock along with their manure helps to encourage invertebrates to flourish, providing a food source for birds and animals, helping to increase biodiversity and to make the landscape more resilient against floods and fires.
Conservation bodies across the UK have used conservation grazing successfully for many years. These include the National Trust, which employs belted galloway cattle to manage its grassland in the Cotswolds. This has allowed the sites involved to move from grass to herbs, creating habitats where marjoram, thyme and rare orchids can flourish. This is hugely important as the UK continues to struggle with a crisis of declining biodiversity.
You can already find conservation grazers locally at Sherbrook Valley, Hednesford Hills, Hazelslade, Hawks Green, Doxey Marshes, Sutton Park, Chase Water, Wetley Moor, and Downs Bank, although they may not be present during the winter months
In 2017 The Ecologist reported on the findings of the State of Nature report that since the 1970's there has been a 41% decline in UK species of birds, animals and fish. Over the same period, thousands of acres of natural habitat have been lost to development.
In October last year data produced by the government showed an equally bleak picture, with, for example woodland birds have declined by 55% and pollinating insects by 30% since the 1970s. Speaking to The Independent Professor Richard Gregory, head of monitoring science at the RSPB said the figures showed nature in the UK is in 'real decline' and that the government is 'on course to miss most of its biodiversity targets’.
With this in mind, improving biodiversity and protecting the habitats of Cannock Chase for future generations as one of the key aims of the plan is something to be celebrated. Under the designations of AONB, SSSI and SAC, it is both a national and international legal obligation for all the landowners to manage and conserve the habitats and wildlife they sustain.
The information group “For the Love of Cannock Chase” has been conducting a Q&A with Staffordshire County Council regarding grazing and the current masterplan for managing the Chase over the next 15 years. The index linked Q&A can be read here.
The Special Areas of Conservation proposals are due to be voted on by Staffordshire County Council Cabinet members on 20th January.