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Landscape

Breadcrumbs

Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (cont'd)

The countryside of England contains extensive areas that are outstandingly beautiful. The hills, valleys, woods and water combine to form a rich diversity of scenery that is of great value to the nation. Accordingly, the Government decided in 1949 to provide legislation to protect these areas as something precious - a beautiful countryside to be passed on to future generations. The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act was enacted.

 

The wilder, more dramatic landscapes became National Parks.  But much countryside of the highest scenic quality cannot be selected for National Park status - not because the landscape is any less beautiful but because opportunities for extensive outdoor recreation (an essential objective of National Parks) are lacking.  It is these sweeps of countryside, often of lower, more gentle scenery, that have become our Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs).

From the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act (1949) a particular set of objectives developed for AONBs:

  • the primary purpose of AONB designation will be to conserve natural beauty;
  • recreation will not be an objective of designation but AONBs should be used to meet the demands for recreation as far as this is consistent with the conservation of natural beauty and the needs of agriculture, forestry and other users;
  • in pursuing the primary objective of designation, account should be taken of the need to safeguard agriculture, forestry, other rural industries and of the economic and social needs of local communities.      

Since 1949, 37 tracts of countryside have been designated as AONBs in England.  The South Hampshire Coast AONB was recently de-designated as the majority of it now lies within the newly designated New Forest National Park, leaving 36 areas.

In 2000, it was recognised that the management arrangements for AONBs were insufficient to guarantee their continuing protection.  Agriculture had changed dramatically in the previous 50 years and there had been massive growth in recreation and tourism.  The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 bought in new laws to help protect AONBS further.  Local authorities now have even greater responsibility for their protection and must prepare management plans to set out how they will care for them.  All public bodies now have a duty of regard for the purposes of AONBs when undertaking their work and there is now an ability to set up special managing bodies known as Conservation Boards.  In parallel with the new legislation, the Countryside Agency put in place new funding to help develop further action and delivery of AONB objectives.