Calls to protect York 'cathedral of natural conservation' from climate change threat
A popular and diverse York nature reserve is threatened by climate change and funding is needed to ensure its future, a charity said.
Yorkshire Wildlife Trust (YWT) launched an appeal to safeguard Askham Bog, the nature reserve on the edge of the city hailed by natural history broadcasting titan Sir David Attenborough as Yorkshire’s “cathedral of nature conservation.”
It is the Trust’s oldest reserve, opened in 1946.
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YWT said more of its peat habitat is drying out each year and faces increased risk from the effects of climate change, in addition to planning and development bidding over the decades.
Sir David Attenborough and Professor Alastair Fitter at Askham Bog in 2019 (Image: Tom Marshall)
Professor Alastair Fitter, president of YWT, said: “It is an astonishing and truly wild place.
“For its size, it is the richest spot in Yorkshire for biodiversity and has been a magnet for naturalists for over 200 years.
“The reserve is an exceptional part of Yorkshire’s heritage and urgently needs support if it is to remain one of our wild crown jewels.”
A spokesperson for the trust said over the years careful work has gone into restoring the bog, including the digging of new ponds and thinning trees to tackling invasive species and using conservation grazing cattle to maintain the boggy meadows.
Askham Bog in spring (Image: Amy Cooper)
YWT added that Askham Bog’s peatland soaks up large amounts of water and releases it slowly, acting as a natural buffer in the city’s battle with flood waters.
However, the charity said hotter, drier summers and increasingly erratic weather are putting the delicate habitat at growing risk of drying out.
Reserve manager Dave Powell said: “It’s vital that we make Askham Bog boggier.
“Many of the reserve’s rarest species, particularly plants, thrive in wetter ground and we know the wildlife is there just waiting for an opportunity to flourish.
“Recent periods of heavy rainfall have seen the return of some species, like slender sedge — once thought lost forever — helping the reserve to store more water could see more exciting returns such as this.
“Peat bogs have a point of no return — once they get dry enough during heat events, their peat can’t be rewetted, and they will start releasing carbon.”
The Trust is now seeking donations for a new Askham Bog Protection Fund to finance five years of work to keep the site wet and resilient.
The charity’s plans include creating small dams, installing a tilting weir, forming new ponds for species such as great-crested newts, and stepping up scrub management to reduce pressure on the water table and fragile peat.
YWT staff protest plans to disrupt Askham Bog in 2019 (Image: Supplied)
YWT added that Askham Bog has survived repeated threats, from a proposed outer ring road through the reserve in 1967 to a major development plan rejected unanimously by councillors in 2019 after more than 7,600 people wrote in support.
Mr Powell said: “Askham Bog has survived because people chose to defend it.
“Both the protection fund and our work to improve the reserve infrastructure are a commitment to the future of Askham Bog, and to the future of Yorkshire’s wildlife and wild spaces.”