Beavers should be allowed to roam around the UK so they can repair our knackered countryside.
Wildlife boffins are calling for rules to be relaxed, allowing the buck-toothed mammals to save rural Britain from the climate and nature crises. Test studies proved that in areas where beavers have been released they have managed rivers and wetlands naturally through coppicing trees and building dams.
Former environment secretary George Eustice restricted the number of areas beavers could be introduced. But the Wildlife Trusts charity is urging the new Government to let beavers roam more freely to tackle issues like droughts and floods.
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Rob Stoneman, director of landscape recovery at The Wildlife Trusts, said: “The benefits of beavers are widely acknowledged and well-evidenced – but across England and Wales, the reintroduction of this keystone species has stalled.
“Numerous scientific studies have shown that beavers improve water quality, stabilise water flows during times of drought and flood, and give a huge boost to habitats and to other wildlife. Given the climate and nature crises, we need beavers back in the wild to give us a hand to resolve these challenges.”
Beavers were hunted to extinction in Britain in the 16th century for their fur, glands and meat, but are now found living in the wild on a number of rivers in Scotland and England through official trials and illegal releases or escapes. They have also been introduced into enclosures in a number of English counties.
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A model for how wild beavers can coexist with people in a landscape is in on the River Otter, where Devon Wildlife Trust stepped in to run a trial allowing the animals to continue living free on the waterway when they were found to be breeding there in 2014.
Pete Burgess, director of nature recovery at Devon Wildlife Trust, said studies with the University of Exeter found the animals had boosted local tourism and businesses, reduced the most damaging peak flood flows and provided steady supplies of water in times of drought.
Professor Richard Brazier, from the University of Exeter, said research showed 90% of people nationally supported beaver reintroductions, and the figures are even higher for the River Otter area.
A Defra spokesperson said: “This government is absolutely committed to restoring and protecting nature and we support species reintroductions where there are clear benefits for nature, people and the environment. We will continue to work with Natural England to develop our approach to beaver reintroductions in England.”
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