Basic info
Hazard: Flooding, drought
Nature-based Solution: Beavers
How it started
Starting point: individual
First approaches:
Getting started: Our village suffered serious flooding twice in 2012, nearly repeated in 2013. Much more than usual frequency. I wanted to hold more water on our land to slow the flow. No funds were available from the government to enable that so we decided beavers could work and be a great deal cheaper.
Finding (Nature-based) Solutions
Selecting a solution: It became clear that beavers provide natural flood management a lot cheaper than humans can, and a lot more effectively, and self-maintained.
Assessing needs: We had to fence them into an enclosure due to poor government regulation.
Co-creation – Finding collaborators
Collaboration: We made a partnership with Cornwall Wildlife Trust (a local NGO), Exeter University, and Derek Gow Consultancy. Cornwall Wildlife Trust (a local NGO), CWT are advisers on biodiversity/ecology models and public engagement. Exeter University, and chiefly the hydrology relating to attenuation of peak flows. But also lots on aerial and ground photographic survey, and biodiversity. Derek Gow Consultancy initial development of the idea, then feasibility and provision of the beavers. A big part of the purpose of this enclosed beaver project was engagement with the public, landowners, other NGO's and the authorities. Practically this has helped inform the national beaver restoration movement, spawned 3 more enclosed projects (2 more to come soon) in Cornwall, and has kicked off a project to bring beavers back unenclosed to 2 more catchments in the county. It has also informed the formation of Beaver Trust, a Great Britain wide NGO devoted to restoration of our rivers and their wildlife with beavers. Without exaggeration it has been a wild success.
When:
Financial Support
Before: Very difficult. In the end, we had to go to crowd funding to make it happen. The inability to get funded through the government channels may have been a blessing as it gave us time to gather a lot of baseline data on the hydrology – a first in beaver studies.
After: We have financed site maintenance and other costs by selling guided visits to the site.
Beyond the project
After the project: The project is ongoing
Overall Experience: It has been a wonderful if a little frustrating at times. A big part of the purpose of this enclosed beaver project was engagement with the public, landowners, other NGO's and the authorities. Practically this has helped inform the national beaver restoration movement, spawned 3 more enclosed projects (2 more to come soon) in Cornwall, and has kicked off a project to bring beavers back unenclosed to 2 more catchments in the county. It has also informed the formation of Beaver Trust, a Great Britain wide NGO devoted to restoration of our rivers and their wildlife with beavers. Without exaggeration it has been a wild success.
Lessons Learnt: Lack of buy in from authorities.
Best Practice: If it is a good idea, follow it wherever it leads.
Narrator's Details
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