You can help wildlife and nature recovery by actively participating in the planning system. Rather than only reacting to potentially damaging planning applications, it’s more effective to change the policies that govern planning decisions.

Beavers will help nature recover in Wales!
Beavers are very special animals because they play a vital role in restoring and managing river and wetland ecosystems. This creates diverse habitats for other species to thrive, benefiting a wide range of other animals and plants. Beavers are often referred to as a ‘keystone species’ or ‘nature’s engineers’ because of the positive impact they can have on the environment.

The Wildlife Trusts believe that development should not come at the expense of our natural environment. All development, be it housing, commercial or infrastructure must be designed and delivered in a way that contributes to nature’s recovery, not its decline.

Planning permission is generally needed for any development. This means building, engineering, mining or other activity that makes changes to the use of land, or changes to existing buildings. There are exceptions that do not count as development, such as maintenance, changes to the interior of a building, agriculture, forestry and changes to gardens.