Nature and people benefit from improvements to Dartmoor haven

Visitors and wildlife at a Dartmoor nature reserve have been the beneficiaries of a generous funder.

Help from the SUEZ Communities Trust has enabled Devon Wildlife Trust to make some significant improvement to its Bellever Moor and Meadows nature reserve. The reserve covers 72 hectares of mainly wildflower-rich hay meadows and moorland near Postbrige on Dartmoor. It became one of Devon Wildlife Trust’s 50 nature reserves as recently as 2015.

A funding grant of £13,340 from SUEZ Communities Trust, which supports community and environmental improvement projects through the Landfill Communities Fund, has allowed the conservation charity to install nearly a mile of new fencing and replace eight dilapidated field gates. The grant also provided the resources with which local volunteers were able to repair traditional stone walls.

Steve Hussey of Devon Wildlife Trust said:

“Fencing and the repair of stone walls doesn’t sound the most glamorous types of conservation work, yet they are vital if we are going to properly manage Bellever Moor and Meadows for wildlife. Stock proof fields allow us to introduce grazing livestock which then control grasses and allow wildflowers and other wildlife to flourish.”

“We also think the repaired traditional stone walls look magnificent in this moorland setting. They were the work of local volunteers, all trained in the skills needed through financial help from the SUEZ Communities Trust.”

Support from SUEZ Communities Trust has also allowed Devon Wildlife Trust to improve public access to the reserve. Two new kissing gates have been built on main routes, while discrete signage now welcomes and directs visitors.

The charity’s Steve Hussey said:

1. especially proud of a new bench which gives visitors a place to pause and enjoy local nature and some stunning moorland views. Subtle illustrations on the bench let visitors know about the wildlife they can hope to see.

Support from the SUEZ Communities Trust has helped us improve this wonderful part of Dartmoor for people and wildlife. We’ve been able to make it easier for locals and visitors to the area to access Bellever Moor and Meadows and when they do visit they will find the nature reserve in better shape than it has been for a generation.”

Marianne Ivin of SUEZ Communities Trust added:

“This is another wonderful project funded through our Accessing Nature fund. Being able to open up new areas of the site to allow the public to gain access to some beautiful wildflower meadows is very exciting for us to be part of. SUEZ Communities Trust provides grants through the Landfill Communities Fund. This important source of funding has been available since 1997 and has provided such worthy projects with more than £1.4 billion.”

People can plan their visit to Devon Wildlife Trust’s Bellever Moor and Meadows at www.devonwildlifetrust.org/reserves