WELCOME TO TIR TEG (BEAUTIFUL LAND), THE FIRST ‘E-BULLETIN’ NEWSLETTER OF THE CORNWALL AREA OF OUTSTANDING NATURAL BEAUTY (AONB) PARTNERSHIP. HERE YOU WILL FIND NEWS, VIEWS, AND LINKS TO MORE INFORMATION ABOUT CORNWALL’S MOST IMPORTANT, AND FRAGILE, LANDSCAPES. WE HOPE YOU LIKE IT – PLEASE LET US HAVE SOME FEEDBACK IF YOU DO (OR EVEN IF YOU DON'T).

• The Cornwall AONB has the same level of protection as a National Park and is part of an international family of protected landscapes
• The Cornwall AONB was designated in 1959 under the 1949 National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act The Camel estuary was added in 1981
• The primary purpose of the AONB designation is to conserve and enhance natural beauty
• The AONB landscape is protected through primary legislation and planning policy guidance
• The status of AONB's was reinforced by further legislation in the Countryside and Rights of Way Act (CROW) 2000, resulting in the formation of the Cornwall AONB Partnership
• The AONB Management Plan for the Cornwall was published in July 2004 and a review is beginning this September

Want to know more? Contact the Cornwall AONB Unit for further information or check out our website on www.cornwall-aonb.gov.uk

1. Which town, on the edge of a western AONB area, is where sea level is taken as a reference point for the height data on all Ordnance Survey maps?
2. Which two lakes, one in the Lizard to Marazion stretch of the AONB and the other on Bodmin Moor, are thought to be the legendary resting place for King Arthur’s sword, Excalibur?
3. Once labelled ‘The Wickedest Man in the World’, which magician lived for a while near Zennor Quoit in West Penwith?
4. Which AONB area is associated with chastity, gardeners, girls, engaged couples and virgins?
5. Which landmark in West Cornwall was ‘vandalised’; by a Lieutenant Goldsmith and took 60 men almost seven months to replace (at the Lieutenant’s own cost)?
6. Earl Ordulf, who gave Rame Head to Tavistock Abbey in 981 AD, was the uncle of which ill-advised king?
7. In which North Cornwall village is the Witchcraft Museum?
8. Why were the five round houses, built in the early 19th century by the Reverend Jeremiah Trist in Veryan on The Roseland, built in the way they were?
9. Which famous footpath links the Camel Estuary AONB area in the north with the Fowey AONB section in the south?
10. Which Italian is commemorated near Poldhu Cove on the Lizard?

The great majority of profitable farms in Penwith are located within the AONB. This encouraging finding was part of a briefing given to the AONB Partnership recently by Rob Poole, Rural Economy Officer at Penwith Council and Ivan Annibal of Globe Regeneration. They presented the results of an economic study by Penwith District Council partly funded through the AONB Sustainable Development Fund.

These were the main conclusions of the study:

• More than half the farms in Penwith and a higher proportion within the West Penwith AONB are profitable
• It is clear that the most profitable farms, within the sample, within the district, are based within the AONB
• It would appear to be a reasonable assumption that the West Penwith ESA schemes (see below) have had a major impact on the profitability of farms
• Those farms which have an element of or a principal focus on horticulture seem to be most profitable
• Those farms which have also diversified into tourism appear to be more profitable than those concentrating just on other activities
• Those farms which have a tourism component and are based in the AONB appear to be doing particularly well.

Much of the AONB is also an Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) where emphasis is placed on maintaining and enhancing the landscape and protecting its wildlife and historic interest. Farmers have the key role in this protection and enhancement process. Twenty years ago the landscape was under serious threat from agricultural intensification on the one hand and bracken encroachment on the other. Grants available under ESA designation helped to arrest and reverse the decline.

Read more on successful farms

Three new members of staff have joined the AONB Unit based in Truro. Tasha Dale is the new full-time Office Manager taking over from Karen Johns who is on a year’s maternity leave. Peter Maxted comes in as part-time Communications Officer to work closely with the AONB Partnership and promote it to the wider world (starting with this newsletter!). June Crossland is the new part-time Planning Officer who will take a strategic role in the delivery of AONB planning policy.

Left to right: June, Tasha, Pete

The Heritage Lottery Fund has set aside a grant of £1.85 million for a £2.8 million heritage conservation and community regeneration project for the Caradon Hill area, and in addition it has awarded £150,000 for development funding. The ‘Caradon Hill Area Heritage Project’ will be led jointly by Cornwall County Council and Caradon District Council and will conserve mining and prehistoric sites, protect wildlife, retain local distinctiveness and involve local residents in all aspects of their local heritage. Part of the area lies within the Bodmin Moor section of the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the project will be greatly beneficial in protecting and enhancing the AONB landscape.

Further funding will be from the South West Regional Development Agency - which has approved a £667,000 grant, Cornwall County Council and Caradon District Council. The development stage funding will go towards developing detailed proposals for a number of proposed works including:

• Conservation of some of the finest mining heritage
• Conservation of important wildlife sites and archaeological sites
• Access improvements, including a proposed footbridge linking open access land at Minions
• Farm conservation advice
• An interpretation programme to help local people enjoy and find out more about the area’s heritage
• Training in heritage skills
• Inspirational education projects involving local schools.

Link to web news

Stunning scenery, five boat trips and a Cornish cream tea are all up for grabs to the first 100 who sign up for the first ever Fal River Walk around the estuary from Falmouth to St Mawes.This unique 14-mile walk on October 7th, aims to raise £10,000 for Save the Children by asking all 100 volunteers to try to raise £100 each in sponsorship.

Read more on Fal River Links Walk

The Looe Valley Walking Festival returns on the 22nd to the 26th of September. There are a couple of new walks this year. The coast path from Lansallos to Polperro offers stunning views, a walk around the town will look at the many facets of its history and there will be a chance to discover the industrial history of Moorswater and walk amongst ancient woodland of the West Looe valley. Organiser Mark Camp will wind up the festival with a moonlit walk across Bodmin Moor.

For more information www.walkaboutwest.freeserve.co.uk/LVWF.html

Prince Charles, Duke of Cornwall, was presented with the UNESCO World Heritage Site inscription certificate in Cornwall recently. Dr Mechtild Rössler, World Heritage Centre Director of Operations for Europe and North America described the Site, much of which is within the Cornwall AONB, as ‘one of the great industrial landscapes of Europe’ and went on to stress the importance of protecting the inscribed landscapes for the future benefit of all mankind. The Prince commented that less than 200 years ago the area was a ‘powerhouse of technological innovation and industrial progress and that physical reminders of this period could be seen across the countryside of Cornwall and west Devon’. He also added that the region had dominated the hard rock mining world for nearly 100 years and Cornish miners, engineers and technology ‘came ! to represent everything that was dynamic and innovative in the early days of the industrial revolution.’

Link to our story 2006 and www.cornish-mining.org.uk/news
More information relating to World Heritage is available at whc.unesco.org

The Sustainable Development Fund got off to a flying start in Cornwall. Our grant fund of £100K was completely allocated to local sustainability projects in the AONB, responding to local needs. The 2005-2006 projects included: The restoration of Ethy Park Orchard and the installation of solar water heaters at Chyvarloe volunteer station by the National Trust Access improvements and conservation works at Pol Hill, St. Agnes with St Agnes Parish Council.

Access and Rights of Way Forum (PAROW) Community events and activities and interpretation on the Helford River with the Helford Marine Conservation Group Reduce, reuse and recycling project at Fowey
3 R’s Coast path accessibility works on the Roseland with the Cornwall Sustainable Tourism (CoaST)
Project Garden Trail Improvements with the Pengersick Historic & Education Trust
A Cornish Hedges Education Pack with the Guild of Cornish Hedgers

A comprehensive report on the 2005-2006 projects is available as a pdf download. We will be reporting on the 2006-2007 projects in our next issue.

Link to web news story and pdf download

Boscastle, one of the most picturesque villages of the Pentire Point to Widemouth section of the Cornwall AONB, was devastated by a catastrophic flood in 2004. Members of the Cornwall AONB Partnership, particularly the National Trust, North Cornwall District Council and the Environment Agency have been working hard on the sympathetic restoration of damaged buildings and a new flood defence scheme. Last autumn the National Trust was delighted to be able to hand back a fully restored and upgraded building to the Youth Hostels Association (YHA). Of the Trust’s various buildings in Boscastle, the Youth Hostel was one of the worst damaged. A special strategy to reduce the risk of trees being washed down the River Valency in the event of a severe flood, has been agreed by the Environment Agency, the National Trust and other landowners. Incidentally the brand ne! w interpretation materials for the visitor centre funded, by the AONB Partnership and including new display boards, are still missing at sea!

Link to web news

This year's Annual Cornwall AONB Conference was held on Saturday 19th May 2007 at the Falmouth Maritime Museum. The Conference gave delegates a chance to learn about the work of the Partnership, receiving presentations from Phil Dyke of the National Trust, Tim Light of the King Harry Ferry/Fal River Links Partnership and Roger Covey, marine specialist at Natural England. Delegates also saw the Mylor and Roseland area of the Cornwall AONB from the sea, aboard one of the ferries operating on the Carrick Roads.

Link to web news