A crowdfund campaign to create Wales’ largest ecosystem restoration project has reached a whopping £90,000, smashing its initial target of £20,000.
Welsh charity Tir Natur (meaning ‘Nature’s Land’ in Welsh) set up the fundraiser at the end of November to aid in the costs of buying 1000 acres of land, which the organisation aims to turn into the pioneering ecosystem restoration site.
However, having seen their £20,000 target reached within a matter of days, the charity, which has become a leading voice for the rewilding movement in Wales, began extending their target. When the crowdfund campaign eventually came to a close on 6 January, the organisation had raised a staggering £70,000 from 662 individual donations, plus £20,000 worth of donations from two Community Founding Members, bringing the overall total raised to over £90,000.
The proposed reserve, the exact location of which is not being made public until after the sale, will see a huge swathe of the Welsh countryside undergo a process of rewilding, allowing the area's natural landscapes, which includes rivers, peat bogs and ancient woodland, to flourish once again.
The new reserve will also create nature corridors and new habitats for Welsh wildlife, from beavers to butterflies, at a time of unprecedented biodiversity loss. There are also plans to introduce a wild grazing system for the land, utilising ancient, cultural breeds of grazers such as Welsh Black cattle and Carneddau ponies to act as ecosystem architects, gently tilling the earth and kickstarting natural regeneration.
As well as creating a protected area for nature and a beautiful green space that can be enjoyed by locals and visitors alike, the new reserve will aid in offsetting adverse impacts of the climate crisis, with the restored forests and peatland acting as a carbon sink, while also soaking up water that otherwise would run into the rivers, reducing the risk of flooding downstream.
Speaking about the project, Welsh television presenter and Tir Natur Ambassador, Iolo Williams, said, ‘As ambassador for Tir Natur, I am hugely excited by their efforts to purchase land and showcase the benefits of rewilding, not only to wildlife and the physical environment, but to farming, Welsh communities and culture. Nature needs this.’
Tir Natur are continuing to seek donations to contribute to the deposit for the land and the associated costs, which are due at the end of April, when Tir Natur hopes to exchange on the property. Along with regular donations, the charity is also seeking new additions to its Community Founding Members Programme, accessible via a donation of £5,000 or more, which is for members of the public who would like a deeper sense of involvement in the project, with access to exclusive updates and land visits.
Learn more about some of the existing protected green spaces in Wales.