Natural England

The dormouse, rare orchids, orchards and even ponds are just some of England’s most threatened species and habitats set to benefit as Natural England announces today (Thursday 22 May) an extra £5 million to support wildlife recovery.

Announcing the new funding, Natural England's Chief Executive, Helen Phillips, said: "We continue to see declines in species such as the red squirrel, lapwing and starfruit, and their habitats. Halting these losses is vital, not just for our wildlife but because often they provide essential services such as clean water, flood management and carbon storage.”

The funding goes into a new grant scheme ‘Countdown 2010’ which shares its name with the international campaign which publicises the commitment by European governments to halt biodiversity loss by 2010.

The £5 million funding package over the next three years will work across two levels. It will fund projects that protect specific endangered species, but the selection criteria will also favour initiatives dedicated to the revival of habitats and species across large areas. The scheme is open to Voluntary Conservation Organisations who make a substantial contribution to Natural England’s lead role in safeguarding the natural environment.

“Through this scheme we will work with our partners to deliver real gains for biodiversity that will benefit us all. Countdown 2010 will make a real difference to the practical delivery of projects on the ground, help people to take part in enhancing their local environment and secure the benefits a healthy natural environment makes to all our lives,” concluded Helen Phillips.

These projects help target specific species and habitats in need of immediate action. The announcement of this extra funding illustrates Natural England’s commitment to begin its work to support some individual species under threat as outlined in Natural England State of the Natural Environment report published this week. Defra today also publishes an update of its priority list of threatened species and habitats in England.

This list contains 941 species, nearly twice the number on the previous list, including familiar species that have suffered rapid recent declines including the hedgehog and house sparrow. It also contains 56 habitats including traditional orchards and some brownfield habitats that are important for wildlife. The Countdown 2010 fund will target the species and habitats on this list.

Natural England’s Countdown 2010 Biodiversity Action Fund (BAF) will support projects carried out by Voluntary Conservation Organisations that directly contribute to the conservation of UK Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) priority habitats and species in England. All grants will be made for three years from 2008 to the end of March 2011. Grants will be awarded for a minimum of £25,000 and a maximum of £250,000 in each of the three years. Further details and an application form can be found on the Natural England website www.naturalengland.org.uk

Background information and regional case studies

The previous Countdown 2010 scheme funded 34 project across all nine English regions. It delivered significant gains for habitats, species and people, including 170ha of heathland restoration, 170ha of newly planted woodland and population increases for several priority species such as black grouse, cirl bunting and several brownfield invertebrates. The new funding package announced today by Natural England allows this essential work to continue.

West Midlands

Enhancing Biodiversity in Northeast Staffordshire To support Staffordshire’s most important grassland habitats, Natural England’s Countdown 2010 funding has identified and mapped 75 new County Wildlife Sites. The “Enhancing Biodiversity in NE Staffordshire” project identified 440 hectares of important grassland habitats in Staffordshire that will now contribute towards the local authority’s measures of protecting biodiversity in support of their new duties to conserve biodiversity.

‘Back to Orange’ project in The Wyre Forest

Countdown 2010 funding is also being utilised in an exciting four year project in the Wyre Forest in Worcestershire, to restore natural habitats for our most threatened butterflies and moths. The Wyre Forest is a most important national and regional stronghold for the rare pearl-bordered fritillary, small pearl-bordered fritillary and the silver-washed fritillary butterflies. Work is already underway on essential habitat restoration work by The Forestry Commission, Butterfly Conservation Trust and Natural England. The Wyre Forest’s 6,500 acres is all that survives of a wood that once stretched along the Severn Valley from Worcester to Bridgnorth, making it a unique area to spot rare plants and animals. It has one of the largest numbers of butterflies and moth species of any site in Britain, Approx 2,500 butterflies and moths have been recorded across the country and nearly half of this number has been found in the Wyre Forest alone. The ‘Back to Orange’ project (so called as the fritillary butterflies are predominantly orange with patterns of darker markings) forms part of a larger project to restore the beautiful landscape to the west of Birmingham through 22 varied projects over the next four years.

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Notes to editors:

For more information please contact the Natural England Press Office on 0845 603 9953, press@naturalengland.org.uk, out of hours 07970 098005. For further information about Natural England please visit: www.naturalengland.org.uk

International Biodiversity Day

The United Nations proclaimed May 22 The International Day for Biological Diversity (IBD) to increase understanding and awareness of biodiversity issues. This year’s theme for IBD, “Biodiversity and Agriculture,” seeks to highlight the importance of sustainable agriculture not only to preserve biodiversity, but also to ensure that we will be able to feed the world, maintain agricultural livelihoods, and enhance human well being into the 21st century and beyond. See http://www.cbd.int/ibd/2008/ for further information regarding IBD.

Countdown 2010

Countdown 2010 galvanises European Union member countries to take specific steps to save biodiversity in its realm by supporting governments and other stakeholders to achieve the 2010 biodiversity target. Countdown 2010 combines efforts to save biodiversity within a powerful network of active partners, including governments, cities and regions, and civil society organisations. National platforms assess performance, create awareness and demand action. For more information visit the website http://www.countdown2010.org/

Natural England

Natural England works for people, places and nature to conserve and enhance biodiversity, landscapes and wildlife in rural, urban, coastal and marine areas. We conserve and enhance the natural environment for its intrinsic value, the wellbeing and enjoyment of people, and the economic prosperity it brings.