A step change in nature recovery

Rewilding offers a glimpse of how our countryside once looked, sounded and smelled. It is a great way to demonstrate through education how much we have lost since WWII and intensification of land use. Using the core area of park as a true wild zone by limiting access will help nature reestablish and spread to other parts of the park and wider countryside, helped by creating wildlife corridors along hedgerows and streams in and out of the park. This does not need intensive human intervention to develop - it needs to be handsoff as much as possible, letting nature heal itself. Some areas can be used to demonstrate how our fields and hedges would have looked pre-war, supported by low intensity grazing of ponies and cattle rather than mechanical intervention which as a co2 impact. Enabling nature to thrive and deliver health benefits will require some level of human use - but not everything can be accomplished in the space if nature recovery is a priority. Activities need to be limited to those that are not invasive or damaging to the environment. Cycle trails are a great idea, but not mixed use with walkers - walking and cycling trails should be different lengths and difficulty to support the needs of as many people as possible. MTB trails are desperately needed in Derby area but are not really a good match for a rewilding project as they often cause significant damage and erosion - perhaps another area can be found for this and developed in parallell. Camping and clamping, nature trails, natural woodland play areas, wildlife courses, guided walks, a whole host of country crafts and learning opportunities are a perfect match. What isn’t needed is big flashy infrastructure projects that cost large sums of money and co2 emissions but little real value for a rewilding project - it doesn’t need tree top walks, themed adventure playgrounds, huge car parks etc - the value in rewilding is peace, tranquillity, fresh air, exercise and education. Improving public transport to avoid car use is a far better infrastructure investment, as are eco friendly education facilities. Food and drink options should also be ecologically sound - selling local seasonal produce, perhaps supplemented by an on site kitchen garden. This is a great opportunity for Derby but it needs to remain focused on its core value - you can’t please everyone and trying to do so would undermine the purpose of rewilding, both for nature and people.