Last posts as foot and mouth buried
SEVEN years after foot and mouth devastated the country, the final evidence of the four burial cells at Hedleyhope Fell, Tow Law, is being removed.Volunteers from Durham Wildlife Trust spent two weeks on the fell removing fences put up by Defra, the department for environment, food and rural affairs, in the wake of the crisis.
And now, with sheep able to graze the entire fell, the Trust has won Secretary of State permission to fence the perimeter and graze Galloway cows on the fell.
The old fences were placed on the site, where 250,000 sheep were buried, to facilitate the restoration of the land back to grass and heath land in 2000.
Marion Hannaford, who lives in Witton Park and is voluntary reserve officer for the fell, said: ³This will open the fell up and take it back to what it was before foot and mouth.
³When the sheep can come on, it will help the land which is good for all the birds.
³There are black grouse, lapwings, skylarks, curlews, you name it you can hear them all as you walk across the fell.² The removal of the fences symbolises a return to normal for the fell, which is a habitat for hundreds of birds, insects and plants.
Sheep will now graze the area freely, which will allow the wildlife to flourish and stop the area becoming scrubland.
Craig Best, Hedleyhope Fell reserve officer, said: ³From an environmental point of view we will be re-using the fences elsewhere in our work.
³The other good news is the permission to fence the fell and Cornsay Common so we can introduce Galloway Cattle.
³They are a rare native breed and they suit this land perfectly.² The Trust volunteers meet every Wednesday and Friday and once a month on a Saturday.
In the past two years, volunteers have worked 1,800 days, which works out as £90,000 worth of labour.
Craig said: ³This is a huge area to manage and without their time, achievements like this would be impossible.² If you would like to join them the or find out more, call Craig Best on
01388488728 or 07704456370.
