1.
Rural area
–
In general, a rural area or countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Whatever is not urban is considered rural, typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas are rural, though so are others such as forests. Different countries have varying definitions of rural for statistical and administrative purposes, in Canada, the census division has been used to represent regions and census consolidated sub-divisions have been used to represent communities. Intermediate regions have 15 to 49 percent of their living in a rural community. Predominantly urban regions have less than 15 percent of their living in a rural community. Predominantly rural regions are classified as rural metro-adjacent, rural non-metro-adjacent and rural northern, following Ehrensaft, as well, rural northern regions encompass all of the Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut. Statistics Canada defines rural for their population counts and this definition has changed over time. Typically, it has referred to the population living outside settlements of 1,000 or less inhabitants, the current definition states that census rural is the population outside settlements with fewer than 1,000 inhabitants and a population density below 400 people per square kilometre. 84% of the United States inhabitants live in suburban and urban areas, Rural areas occupy the remaining 90 percent. The U. S. Census Bureau, the USDAs Economic Research Service, an urbanized area consists of a central surrounding areas whose population is greater than 50,000. USDA The USDAs Office of Rural Development may define rural by various population thresholds, for example, a metropolitan county is one that contains an urbanized area, or one that has a twenty-five percent commuter rate to an urbanized area regardless of population. In 2014, the USDA updated their rural / non-rural area definitions based on the 2010 Census counts, Rural health definitions can be different for establishing under-served areas or health care accessibility in rural areas of the United States. This became the Goldsmith Modification definition of rural, health care delivery in rural areas of the United States can be challenging. From 2005-2011, the rate of potentially preventable hospitalizations for acute conditions was highest in rural areas, in Brazil, theres different notions of rural area and countryside. Rural areas are any place outside an urban development and its carried by informal usage. Otherwise, countryside are officially defined as all municipalities outside the capitals metropolitan region. Some states as Mato Grosso do Sul doesnt have any metropolitan region, thus all of the state, Rio de Janeiro is singular in Brazil and its de facto a metropolitan state, as circa 70% of its population are located in Greater Rio
2.
England
–
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west, the Irish Sea lies northwest of England and the Celtic Sea lies to the southwest. England is separated from continental Europe by the North Sea to the east, the country covers five-eighths of the island of Great Britain in its centre and south, and includes over 100 smaller islands such as the Isles of Scilly, and the Isle of Wight. England became a state in the 10th century, and since the Age of Discovery. The Industrial Revolution began in 18th-century England, transforming its society into the worlds first industrialised nation, Englands terrain mostly comprises low hills and plains, especially in central and southern England. However, there are uplands in the north and in the southwest, the capital is London, which is the largest metropolitan area in both the United Kingdom and the European Union. In 1801, Great Britain was united with the Kingdom of Ireland through another Act of Union to become the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. In 1922 the Irish Free State seceded from the United Kingdom, leading to the latter being renamed the United Kingdom of Great Britain, the name England is derived from the Old English name Englaland, which means land of the Angles. The Angles were one of the Germanic tribes that settled in Great Britain during the Early Middle Ages, the Angles came from the Angeln peninsula in the Bay of Kiel area of the Baltic Sea. The earliest recorded use of the term, as Engla londe, is in the ninth century translation into Old English of Bedes Ecclesiastical History of the English People. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, its spelling was first used in 1538. The earliest attested reference to the Angles occurs in the 1st-century work by Tacitus, Germania, the etymology of the tribal name itself is disputed by scholars, it has been suggested that it derives from the shape of the Angeln peninsula, an angular shape. An alternative name for England is Albion, the name Albion originally referred to the entire island of Great Britain. The nominally earliest record of the name appears in the Aristotelian Corpus, specifically the 4th century BC De Mundo, in it are two very large islands called Britannia, these are Albion and Ierne. But modern scholarly consensus ascribes De Mundo not to Aristotle but to Pseudo-Aristotle, the word Albion or insula Albionum has two possible origins. Albion is now applied to England in a poetic capacity. Another romantic name for England is Loegria, related to the Welsh word for England, Lloegr, the earliest known evidence of human presence in the area now known as England was that of Homo antecessor, dating to approximately 780,000 years ago. The oldest proto-human bones discovered in England date from 500,000 years ago, Modern humans are known to have inhabited the area during the Upper Paleolithic period, though permanent settlements were only established within the last 6,000 years
3.
Wales
–
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, and it had a population in 2011 of 3,063,456 and has a total area of 20,779 km2. Wales has over 1,680 miles of coastline and is mountainous, with its higher peaks in the north and central areas, including Snowdon. The country lies within the temperate zone and has a changeable. Welsh national identity emerged among the Celtic Britons after the Roman withdrawal from Britain in the 5th century, Llywelyn ap Gruffudds death in 1282 marked the completion of Edward I of Englands conquest of Wales, though Owain Glyndŵr briefly restored independence to Wales in the early 15th century. The whole of Wales was annexed by England and incorporated within the English legal system under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542, distinctive Welsh politics developed in the 19th century. Welsh Liberalism, exemplified in the early 20th century by Lloyd George, was displaced by the growth of socialism, Welsh national feeling grew over the century, Plaid Cymru was formed in 1925 and the Welsh Language Society in 1962. Established under the Government of Wales Act 1998, the National Assembly for Wales holds responsibility for a range of devolved policy matters, two-thirds of the population live in south Wales, mainly in and around Cardiff, Swansea and Newport, and in the nearby valleys. Now that the countrys traditional extractive and heavy industries have gone or are in decline, Wales economy depends on the sector, light and service industries. Wales 2010 gross value added was £45.5 billion, over 560,000 Welsh language speakers live in Wales, and the language is spoken by a majority of the population in parts of the north and west. From the late 19th century onwards, Wales acquired its popular image as the land of song, Rugby union is seen as a symbol of Welsh identity and an expression of national consciousness. The Old English-speaking Anglo-Saxons came to use the term Wælisc when referring to the Celtic Britons in particular, the modern names for some Continental European lands and peoples have a similar etymology. The modern Welsh name for themselves is Cymry, and Cymru is the Welsh name for Wales and these words are descended from the Brythonic word combrogi, meaning fellow-countrymen. The use of the word Cymry as a self-designation derives from the location in the post-Roman Era of the Welsh people in modern Wales as well as in northern England and southern Scotland. It emphasised that the Welsh in modern Wales and in the Hen Ogledd were one people, in particular, the term was not applied to the Cornish or the Breton peoples, who are of similar heritage, culture, and language to the Welsh. The word came into use as a self-description probably before the 7th century and it is attested in a praise poem to Cadwallon ap Cadfan c. 633. Thereafter Cymry prevailed as a reference to the Welsh, until c.1560 the word was spelt Kymry or Cymry, regardless of whether it referred to the people or their homeland. The Latinised forms of names, Cambrian, Cambric and Cambria, survive as lesser-used alternative names for Wales, Welsh
4.
Northern Ireland
–
Northern Ireland is a constituent unit of the United Kingdom in the north-east of Ireland. It is variously described as a country, province, region, or part of the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland shares a border to the south and west with the Republic of Ireland. In 2011, its population was 1,810,863, constituting about 30% of the total population. Northern Ireland was created in 1921, when Ireland was partitioned between Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland by an act of the British parliament, Northern Ireland has historically been the most industrialised region of Ireland. After declining as a result of the political and social turmoil of the Troubles, its economy has grown significantly since the late 1990s. Unemployment in Northern Ireland peaked at 17. 2% in 1986, dropping to 6. 1% for June–August 2014,58. 2% of those unemployed had been unemployed for over a year. Prominent artists and sports persons from Northern Ireland include Van Morrison, Rory McIlroy, Joey Dunlop, Wayne McCullough, some people from Northern Ireland prefer to identify as Irish while others prefer to identify as British. Cultural links between Northern Ireland, the rest of Ireland, and the rest of the UK are complex, in many sports, the island of Ireland fields a single team, a notable exception being association football. Northern Ireland competes separately at the Commonwealth Games, and people from Northern Ireland may compete for either Great Britain or Ireland at the Olympic Games. The region that is now Northern Ireland was the bedrock of the Irish war of resistance against English programmes of colonialism in the late 16th century, the English-controlled Kingdom of Ireland had been declared by the English king Henry VIII in 1542, but Irish resistance made English control fragmentary. Victories by English forces in war and further Protestant victories in the Williamite War in Ireland toward the close of the 17th century solidified Anglican rule in Ireland. In Northern Ireland, the victories of the Siege of Derry and their intention was to materially disadvantage the Catholic community and, to a lesser extent, the Presbyterian community. In the context of open institutional discrimination, the 18th century saw secret, militant societies develop in communities in the region and act on sectarian tensions in violent attacks. Following this, in an attempt to quell sectarianism and force the removal of discriminatory laws, the new state, formed in 1801, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, was governed from a single government and parliament based in London. Between 1717 and 1775 some 250,000 people from Ulster emigrated to the British North American colonies and it is estimated that there are more than 27 million Scotch-Irish Americans now living in the US. By the close of the century, autonomy for Ireland within the United Kingdom, in 1912, after decades of obstruction from the House of Lords, Home Rule became a near-certainty. A clash between the House of Commons and House of Lords over a controversial budget produced the Parliament Act 1911, which enabled the veto of the Lords to be overturned. The House of Lords veto had been the unionists main guarantee that Home Rule would not be enacted, in 1914, they smuggled thousands of rifles and rounds of ammunition from Imperial Germany for use by the Ulster Volunteers, a paramilitary organisation opposed to the implementation of Home Rule
5.
Protected area
–
Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the laws of each country or the regulations of the international organisations involved. There are over 161,000 protected areas in the world with more added daily, by contrast, only 1. 17% of the worlds oceans is included in the worlds ~6,800 Marine Protected Areas. Protected areas are essential for biodiversity conservation, often providing habitat, Protection helps maintain ecological processes that cannot survive in most intensely managed landscapes and seascapes. Generally, protected areas are understood to be those in human occupation or at least the exploitation of resources is limited. As a result, Protected Areas can encompass a range of governance types. Indeed, governance of protected areas has emerged a critical factor in their success, subsequently, the range of natural resources that any one protected area may guard is vast. Of all global terrestrial carbon stock,15. 2% is contained within protected areas, Protected areas in South America hold 27% of the worlds carbon stock, which is the highest percentage of any country in both absolute terms and as a proportion of the total stock. Rainforests,18. 8% of the worlds forest is covered by protected areas, of the 670 ecoregions with forest cover, 54% have 10% or more of their forest cover protected under IUCN Categories I – VI. Mountain protected area coverage has increased globally by 21% since 1990, the categories provide international standards for defining protected areas and encourage conservation planning according to their management aims. Protecting places and resources is by no means a modern concept, over 2000 years ago, royal decrees in India protected certain areas. In Europe, rich and powerful people protected hunting grounds for a thousand years, moreover, the idea of protection of special places is universal, for example, it occurs among the communities in the Pacific and in parts of Africa. However, the protected areas movement doesnt begin until late nineteenth-century in North America, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. While the idea of protected areas spread around the world in the twentieth century, thus, in North America, protected areas were about safeguarding dramatic and sublime scenery, in Africa, the concern was with game parks, in Europe, landscape protection was more common. The spectrum of benefits and values of protected areas is recognised not only ecologically, international programmes for the protection of representative ecosystems remain relatively progressive, with less advances in marine and freshwater biomes. There is increasing pressure to take account of human needs when setting up protected areas. Such negotiations are never easy but usually stronger and longer-lasting results for both conservation and people. In some countries, protected areas can be assigned without the infrastructure and networking needed to substitute consumable resources, one of the main concerns regarding protected areas on land and sea is their effectiveness at preventing the ongoing loss of biodiversity
6.
Natural England
–
Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is responsible for ensuring that Englands natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, freshwater and marine environments, geology and it also has a responsibility to help people enjoy, understand and access the natural environment. It has been criticised recently for ignoring scientific data and granting extended badger cull licences to DEFRA. Natural Englands latest corporate plan sets out its goals and detailed objectives and it is responsible for the delivery of some of Defras public service agreements. Natural England takes its finance, human resources and estates services from the Defra Shared Services organisation, information technology services are outsourced to IBM. Natural England joined the 10,10 project in 2009 in a bid to reduce its own carbon footprint, one year later they announced that they had reduced their carbon emissions by 13%. In 2008, Sir Martin Doughty, the chairman of Natural England warned the Prime Minister of the danger of genetically modified crops. In May 2008, Natural England published a report, State of the Natural Environment, the report was intended to be used by environmental organisations as a benchmark and source for policy development. These projects increased levels of activity and peoples connections to their local green spaces. However, it was not clear whether these projects really changed peoples long-term attitudes, Natural England is promoting the concept of green infrastructure as a way to deliver a wide range of benefits for people and the natural environment together. Natural England was challenged in High Court in 2006 by Peter Boggis, Natural England lost the case in 2009, when Mr. Justice Blair, the brother of the former Prime Minister, ruled that Mr. Boggis human predicament was more important than the sites SSSI status. Natural England won the subsequent appeal in October 2009
7.
Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000
–
The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, known as the CRoW Act is a United Kingdom Act of Parliament affecting England and Wales which came into force on 30 November 2000. The Act implements the so-called right to roam long sought by the Ramblers Association and its predecessors, on certain upland and uncultivated areas of England and this element of the act was implemented in stages as definitive maps of different regions were produced. The act refers to areas of mountain, moor, heath and down in addition to registered common land, a staged review of public rights of way, including limited rights to create new public footpaths where needed, is being conducted under the Act. Some long-standing areas of dispute became accessible under the Act — these include Chrome Hill, the Countryside and Rights of Way Act also made some changes in respect of nature conservation, in particular to Part I of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. gov. uk
8.
National parks of England and Wales
–
The national parks of England and Wales are areas of relatively undeveloped and scenic landscape that are designated under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949. There are currently thirteen national parks in England and Wales, when national parks carry out these purposes they also have the duty to, seek to foster the economic and social well-being of local communities within the national parks. An estimated 110 million people visit the parks of England. Recreation and tourism bring visitors and funds into the parks, to sustain their efforts and support the local population through jobs. These visitors also bring problems, such as erosion and traffic congestion, before the 19th century, relatively wild, remote areas were often seen simply as uncivilised and dangerous. In 1725 Daniel Defoe described the High Peak as the most desolate, wild, however, by the early 19th century, romantic poets such as Byron, Coleridge and Wordsworth wrote about the inspirational beauty of the untamed countryside. Wordsworth described the English Lake District as a sort of property in which every man has a right and interest who has an eye to perceive. This early vision, based in the Picturesque movement, took over a century, the idea for a form of national parks was first proposed in the United States in the 1860s, where national parks were established to protect wilderness areas such as Yosemite. This model has been used in other countries since. After thousands of years of integration into the landscape, Britain lacks any substantial areas of wilderness. Furthermore, those areas of beauty so cherished by the romantic poets were often only maintained and managed in their existing state by human activity. Alongside of direct action trespasses, such as the trespass of Kinder Scout. In 1931, Christopher Addison chaired a government committee that proposed a National Park Authority to choose areas for designation as national parks, however, no further action was taken after the intervention of the 1931 General Election. The voluntary Standing Committee on National Parks first met on 26 May 1936 to put the case to the government for national parks in the UK, after World War II, the Labour Party proposed the establishment of national parks as part of the post-war reconstruction of the UK. Further, the distribution of selected areas should as far as practicable be such that at least one of them is quickly accessible from each of the centres of population in England. The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 was passed with all party support, the first ten national parks were designated as such in the 1950s under the Act in mostly poor-quality agricultural upland. Accessibility from the cities was also considered important, on 31 March 2009, Environment Secretary Hilary Benn announced that the South Downs would be designated a national park. The South Downs National Park came into effect on 31 March 2010, following the Environment Act 1995, each national park has been managed by its own national park authority since April 1997
9.
Google Maps
–
Google Maps is a web mapping service developed by Google. It offers satellite imagery, street maps, 360° panoramic views of streets, real-time traffic conditions, Google maps began as a C++ desktop program designed by Lars and Jens Eilstrup Rasmussen at Where 2 Technologies. In October 2004, the company was acquired by Google, which converted it into a web application, after additional acquisitions of a geospatial data visualization company and a realtime traffic analyzer, Google Maps was launched in February 2005. The services front end utilizes JavaScript, XML, and Ajax, Google Maps offers an API that allows maps to be embedded on third-party websites, and offers a locator for urban businesses and other organizations in numerous countries around the world. Google Map Maker allows users to expand and update the services mapping worldwide. Much of the satellite imagery is no more than three years old and is updated on a regular basis. Google Maps uses a variant of the Mercator projection. The current redesigned version of the application was made available in 2013. Google Maps for mobile was released in September 2008 and features GPS turn-by-turn navigation, in August 2013, it was determined to be the worlds most popular app for smartphones, with over 54% of global smartphone owners using it at least once. In 2012, Google reported having over 7,100 employees, Google Maps provides a route planner under Get Directions. Up to four modes of transportation are available depending on the area, driving, public transit, walking, in combination with Google Street View, issues such as parking, turning lanes, and one-way streets can be viewed before traveling. China mainland, Hong Kong, Macau, Jordan, Lebanon, only public transit directions are provided for South Korea. All countries of mainland North and Central America are covered contiguously, all countries of mainland South America are covered. All countries including Trinidad and Tobago* are treated contiguously, all inhabited countries and territories in the Caribbean are covered, though in general there are no connections between islands. Like many other Google web applications, Google Maps uses JavaScript extensively, as the user drags the map, the grid squares are downloaded from the server and inserted into the page. When a user searches for a business, the results are downloaded in the background for insertion into the panel and map. Locations are drawn dynamically by positioning a red pin on top of the map images, a hidden IFrame with form submission is used because it preserves browser history. The site also uses JSON for data rather than XML
10.
Gower Peninsula
–
Gower or the Gower Peninsula is a peninsula in the south of Wales, projecting westwards into the Bristol Channel. It is the most westerly part of the county of Glamorgan, in 1956, Gower became the first area in the United Kingdom to be designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. About 70 square miles in area, Gower is known for its coastline, popular with walkers and outdoor enthusiasts, Gower has many caves, including Paviland Cave and Minchin Hole Cave. The peninsula is bounded by the Loughor Estuary to the north, Gower Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty covers 188 km², including most of the peninsula west of Crofty, Three Crosses, Upper Killay, Blackpill and Bishopston. The highest point of Gower is The Beacon at Rhossili Down at 193 metres overlooking Rhossili Bay, Pwll Du and the Bishopton Valley form a statutory Local Nature Reserve. The interior of Gower consists mainly of farmland and common land, the population resides mainly in villages and small communities, though suburban development has made a number of communities in eastern Gower part of the Swansea Urban Area. The southern coast consists of a series of small, rocky or sandy bays, such as Langland and Three Cliffs, the north of the peninsula has fewer beaches, and is home to the cockle-beds of Penclawdd. Wales is known to have inhabited since at least the Upper Paleolithic period. In 1823 archaeologists discovered a fairly complete Upper Paleolithic human male skeleton in Paviland Cave and they named their find the Red Lady of Paviland because the skeleton is dyed in red ochre, though later investigators determined it was actually a male. This was the first human fossil to have found anywhere in the world. The most recent re-calibrated radiocarbon dating in 2009 indicates that the skeleton can be dated to around 33,000 Before Present, in 1937 the Parc Cwm long cairn was identified as a Severn-Cotswold type of chambered long barrow. Also known as Parc le Breos burial chamber, it is a partly restored Neolithic chambered tomb, the megalithic burial chamber, or cromlech, was built around 6,000 BP. In the 1950s, members of Cambridge University excavating in a cave on the peninsula found 300–400 pieces of flint related to toolmaking, and dated it to between 14, 000–12,000 BC. In 2010 an instructor from Bristol University, exploring caves in the area, discovered a rock drawing of a red deer from the same period. Gower is also home to menhirs or standing stones from the Bronze Age, of the nine stones, eight remain today. One of the most notable of the stones is Arthurs stone near Cefn Bryn and its 25-ton capstone was most likely a glacial erratic, the builders dug under it and supported it with upright stones to create a burial chamber. The remains of Sweyne Howes on Rhossili Down, Penmaen Burrows Tomb, during the Bronze Age, people continued to use local caves for shelter and for burying their dead. Bronze Age evidence, such as urns, pottery and human remains, has been found in Tooth Cave at Llethryd, Culver Hole
11.
River Tamar
–
The Tamar is a river in south west England, that forms most of the border between Devon and Cornwall. The area is a World Heritage Site due to its mining activities. The Tamars source is less than 6 km from the north Cornish coast, the total length of the river is 61 miles. At its mouth, the Tamar flows into the Hamoaze before entering Plymouth Sound, tributaries of the river include the rivers Inny, Ottery, Kensey and Lynher on the Cornish side, and the Deer and Tavy on the Devon side. The name Tamar was mentioned by Ptolemy in the century in his Geography. The name is said to mean Great Water, the Tamar is one of several British rivers whose ancient name is assumed by some to be derived from a prehistoric river word apparently meaning dark flowing and which it shares with the River Thames. The seventh century Ravenna Cosmography mentions a Roman settlement named Tamaris, Plymouth, Launceston and the Roman fort at Calstock have been variously suggested. The river is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest, a European Special Area of Conservation, and it is also designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape. In November 2013, South West Water was fined £50,000 after it admitted permitting the discharge of sewage from its Camels Head treatment plant into a tributary of the River Tamar for eight years. Together, the Tamar, Tavy and Lynher form the Tamar Valley, the Tamar Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty covers around 195 km2 around the lower Tamar and its tributaries the Tavy and the Lynher. It was first proposed in 1963, but was not designated until 1995, the highest point in the AONB is Kit Hill,334 metres above sea level. The Plymouth Sound and Estuaries are a European Special Area of Conservation, rocky reefs in low salinity estuarine conditions far inland on the Tamar are very unusual and support species such as the hydroid Cordylophora caspia. The Tamar is one of few estuaries where zonation of rocky habitats can be observed along an estuarine gradient, the Tamar–Tavy Estuary is a Site of Special Scientific Interest covering the tidal estuaries of the River Tamar and the River Tavy. Part of the Tamar estuary also forms the Tamar Estuary Nature Reserve, the site was designated in 1991 for its biodiversity and varying habitats that support a large number of wader and wildfowl species, as well as the special interest of its marine biology. The site supports an important wintering population of avocet and supports species such as black-tailed godwit, whimbrel, greenshank, spotted redshank, green sandpiper. The valley, with the town of Tavistock was added to the World Heritage List during the 30th Session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in Vilnius. According to Ordnance Survey mapping, the source of the Tamar is at Woolley Moor, approximately 3.5 miles from the north Cornish coast, at 50. 9235°N4. 4622°W /50.9235, -4.4622. The location of the spring is a windswept plateau largely devoid of farmland
12.
Clwydian Range
–
The Clwydian Range is a series of hills and mountains in north east Wales that runs from Llandegla in the south to Prestatyn in the north, with the highest point being the popular Moel Famau. The range is designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the AONB has been extended to include the Dee Valley around Llangollen including the Horseshoe Pass and Castell Dinas Bran, extending the area to 150 square miles. The highest point in the AONB is Moel y Gamelin at 1,893 feet, the Clwydian Hills are formed from an upstanding block of Silurian age sandstones, mudstones and siltstones. The ranges rocks are faulted, the major Vale of Clwyd Fault is responsible for the impressive west-facing scarp of the Clwydian Range. It downthrows the rocks to the west and separates the younger Carboniferous and they have heather-clad summits above rolling pastures. The Offa’s Dyke National Trail traverses the range from Chirk to Prestatyn and at the end of the range is Llandegla Forest. The range includes a number of hills possessing Iron Age hillforts, including Y Foel, Moel-y-gaer, Penycloddiau, Moel Arthur, there are, as with many places in the west of Britain, a number of legends associated with King Arthur surrounding these hills. There are a number of tumuli and cairns on the hills, the Clwydian Range was in 1985 designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, one of only five in Wales. A wide range of wildlife thrives in the range, including red kites and red foxes, which both prey on rabbits and voles. There is also one of the few Welsh populations of Black Grouse and there is a project to conserve the European water vole, another project is trying to get rid of the non-native Himalayan balsam which has invaded the Alyn Valley area. The Offas Dyke Path follows the Clwydian Range, although Offas Dyke itself was not constructed on it, the Clwydian Way long distance footpath passes through the Clwydian Range, and the North Wales Path follows the foot of the scarp between Prestatyn and Dyserth. Clwydian Range AONB Clwydian Range Tourism Group
13.
Strangford Lough
–
Strangford Lough is a large sea loch or inlet in County Down, in the east of Northern Ireland. It is the largest inlet in the British Isles, covering 150 km2, the loch is almost totally enclosed by the Ards Peninsula and is linked to the Irish Sea by a long narrow channel or strait. The main body of the loch has at least seventy islands along with many islets, bays, coves, headlands, Strangford Lough was designated as Northern Irelands first Marine Conservation Zone under the introduction of the Marine Act 2013. It has also designated a Special Area of Conservation under the EU Habitats Directive. In the medieval and early modern period Strangford Lough was known in Irish as Loch Cuan, Strangford Lough is a popular tourist destination noted for its fishing and scenery. Towns and villages around the loch include Killyleagh, Comber, Newtownards, Portaferry, the latter two are connected by a car ferry. The name Strangford comes from Old Norse Strangr-fjörðr, meaning strong sea-inlet, the Vikings were active in the area during the Middle Ages. Originally, this referred only to the narrow channel linking the loch to the sea. Up until about the 18th century, the body of the loch was better known by the Irish name Loch Cuan. This name was anglicized as Lough Coan, Lough Cone, Lough Coyn, Lough Coin, the narrow channel may have been known in Latin as the fretum Brene. In Ulster-Scots the lochs name is spelt Strangfurd or Strangfirt Loch, common cord-grass C. E. Hubbard was introduced in the mid-1940s is now abundant. The rocky and boulder shores toward the south of the lough are dominated by the seaweed knotted wrack Ascophyllum nodosum, a brown seaweed named Sargassum muticum, originally from the Pacific was discovered on 15 March 1995 in Strangford Lough at Paddys Point. The plants were established on mesh bags containing oysters. The bags had been put out in 1987 containing Pacific oysters imported from Guernsey and this Sargassum is known to be a highly invasive species. Other algae include, Apoglossum rusciofolium J. Ag, Compsothamnion gracillimum de Toni, Compsothamnion thuyoides Schmitz, Calliothamnion corymbosum Lyngb, Rhodymenia delicatula P. Dang. Haemescharia hennedyi Vinogradova, Rhodophyllis divaricate Papenf, calliblepharis ciliata Kütz, Peyssonnelia dubyi P. et H. Crouan, Plagiospora gracilis Kuck, Gloiosiphonia capillaris Carm. Scinaia pseudocrispa Cremades/S. turgida Chemin, Porphyropsis coccinea Rosenv, Fucus vesiculosus L. var volubilis Turn. Fucus cottonii Wynne et Magne, Colpomenia peregrine Hame, Asperococcus compressus Griff, Strangford Lough and Islands is an Important Bird Area
14.
Isles of Scilly
–
The Isles of Scilly are an archipelago off the south western tip of the Cornish peninsula of Great Britain. It is the southernmost location in England and the United Kingdom, the population of all the islands at the 2011 census was 2,203. Scilly forms part of the county of Cornwall, and some services are combined with those of Cornwall. However, since 1890, the islands have had a local authority. Since the passing of the Isles of Scilly Order 1930, this authority has had the status of a county council, the adjective Scillonian is sometimes used for people or things related to the archipelago. The Duchy of Cornwall owns most of the land on the islands. Tourism is a part of the local economy, along with agriculture — particularly the production of cut flowers. Scilly has been inhabited since the Stone Age, and until the early 20th century its history had been one of subsistence living, farming and fishing continue, but the main industry now is tourism. The islands may correspond to the Cassiterides visited by the Phoenicians, however, the archipelago itself does not contain much tin—it may be that the islands were used as a staging post. It is likely that until recent times the islands were much larger. The word Ennor is a contraction of the Old Cornish En Noer, remains of a prehistoric farm have been found on Nornour, which is now a small rocky skerry far too small for farming. There once was an Iron Age Britain community here that extended into Roman times and this community was likely formed by immigrants from Brittany, probably the Veneti who were active in the tin trade that originated in mining activity in Cornwall and Devon. At certain low tides the sea becomes shallow enough for people to walk between some of the islands and this is possibly one of the sources for stories of drowned lands, e. g. Lyonesse. Ancient field walls are visible below the tide line off some of the islands. Some of the Cornish language place names appear to reflect past shorelines. The whole of southern England has been sinking in opposition to post-glacial rebound in Scotland, this has caused the rias on the southern Cornish coast, e. g. River Fal. Scilly has been identified as the place of exile of two heretical 4th century bishops, Instantius and Tiberianus, who were followers of Priscillian, in 995, Olaf Tryggvason became King Olaf I of Norway. 960, Olaf had raided various European cities and fought in several wars, in 986 he met a Christian seer on the Isles of Scilly
15.
Cotswolds
–
The area is defined by the bedrock of Jurassic limestone that creates a type of grassland habitat rare in the UK and that is quarried for the golden coloured Cotswold stone. It contains unique features derived from the use of this mineral, the well-established boundaries of the Cotswolds have expanded considerably since moving out of the cities and into the countryside gained popularity. Now the Cotswolds boundaries are roughly 25 miles across and 90 miles long, stretching south-west from just south of Stratford-upon-Avon to just south of Bath. It lies across the boundaries of several English counties, mainly Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire, the hills give their name to the Cotswold local-government district in Gloucestershire, which administers a large part of the area. The highest point of the region is Cleeve Hill at 1,083 ft, there is evidence of Neolithic settlement from burial chambers on Cotswold Edge, and there are remains of Bronze and Iron Age forts. Later the Romans built villas, such as at Chedworth, settlements such as Gloucester, the area still preserves numerous large, handsome Cotswold Stone wool churches. The affluent area in the 21st century has attracted wealthy Londoners and others who own homes there or have chosen to retire to the Cotswolds. The name Cotswold is popularly attributed the meaning sheep enclosure in rolling hillsides, incorporating the term, wold, compare also the Weald from the Saxon/German word Wald meaning wood. Cod was interpreted as an Old English personal name, which may be recognised in further names, Cutsdean, Codeswellan, the spine of the Cotswolds runs southwest to northeast through six counties, particularly Gloucestershire, west Oxfordshire and south western Warwickshire. The northern and western edges of the Cotswolds are marked by steep escarpments down to the Severn valley and this feature, known as the Cotswold escarpment, or sometimes the Cotswold Edge, is a result of the uplifting of the limestone layer, exposing its broken edge. This is a cuesta, in geological terms, the dip slope is to the southeast. On the eastern boundary lies the city of Oxford and on the west is Stroud, to the southeast, the upper reaches of the Thames Valley and towns such as Lechlade, Tetbury and Fairford are often considered to mark the limit of this region. To the south the Cotswolds, with the uplift of the Cotswold Edge, reach beyond Bath. The area is characterised by small towns and villages built of the underlying Cotswold stone. This limestone is rich in fossils, particularly of fossilised sea urchins, Cotswold towns include Bourton-on-the-Water, Broadway, Burford, Chipping Norton, Dursley, Moreton-in-Marsh, Northleach, Stow-on-the-Wold, Stroud and Winchcombe. Bath, Cheltenham, Cirencester, Gloucester and Stroud are larger urban centres that border on, or are surrounded by. The town of Chipping Campden is notable for being the home of the Arts and Crafts movement, founded by William Morris at the end of the 19th, William Morris lived occasionally in Broadway Tower, a folly, now part of a country park. Chipping Campden also is known for the annual Cotswold Olimpick Games, Cotswold stone is a yellow oolitic Jurassic limestone
16.
England and Wales
–
The devolved National Assembly for Wales was created in 1999 by the Parliament of the United Kingdom under the Government of Wales Act 1998 and provides a degree of self-government in Wales. The powers of the Assembly were expanded by the Government of Wales Act 2006, which allows it to pass its own laws, there is no equivalent body for England, which is directly governed by the Parliament and the government of the United Kingdom. During the Roman occupation of Britain, the area of present-day England and Wales was administered as a single unit, at that time, most of the native inhabitants of Roman Britain spoke Brythonic languages, and were all regarded as Britons, divided into numerous tribes. After the conquest, the Romans administered this region as a single unit and this aimed to replace Welsh criminal law with English law. Welsh law continued to be used for civil cases until the annexation of Wales to England in the 16th century, the Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542 then consolidated the administration of all the Welsh territories and incorporated them fully into the legal system of the Kingdom of England. Prior to 1746 it was not clear whether a reference to England in legislation included Wales and this specified that in all prior and future laws, references to England would by default include Wales. The Wales and Berwick Act was repealed in 1967, although the definition of England it created is preserved for acts passed prior to its repeal. Since the Acts repeal what was referred to as England is now England and Wales, while references to England, England and Wales are treated as a single unit, for most purposes, because the two form the constitutional successor to the former Kingdom of England. The continuance of Scots law was guaranteed under the 1706 Treaty of Union that led to the Acts of Union 1707, thus, most laws applicable to England also applied to Wales. However, Parliament now passes laws applicable to Wales and not to England, examples are the Welsh Language Acts 1967 and 1993 and the Government of Wales Act 1998. Measures and Acts of the National Assembly for Wales passed since the Government of Wales Act 2006 also apply in Wales, following the Government of Wales Act, effective since May 2007, the National Assembly for Wales can legislate on matters devolved to it. Following a referendum on 3 March 2011, the Welsh Assembly gained direct law-making powers and this was the first time in almost 500 years that Wales had its own powers to legislate. Each piece of Welsh legislation is known as an Act of the Assembly, outside of the legal system the position is mixed. Some organisations combine as England and Wales, others are separate, some religious denominations organise on the basis of England and Wales, most notably the Roman Catholic Church, but also small denominations, e. g. the Evangelical Presbyterian Church. Prior to the disestablishment of the Church in Wales in 1920, the Electoral Commission maintains a register of political parties, organised according to where the party operates. The order of precedence in England and Wales is distinct from those of Northern Ireland and Scotland, the national parks of England and Wales have a distinctive legislative framework and history. Courts of England and Wales Judiciary of England and Wales Cultural relationship between the Welsh and the English Geography of Wales Geography of England British Isles
17.
National park
–
A national park is a park in use for conservation purposes. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns, although individual nations designate their own national parks differently, there is a common idea, the conservation of wild nature for posterity and as a symbol of national pride. An international organization, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, although Yellowstone was not officially termed a national park in its establishing law, it was always termed such in practice and is widely held to be the first and oldest national park in the world. The first area to use national park in its legislation was the USs Mackinac Island. Australias Royal National Park, established in 1879, was the third official national park. In 1895 ownership of Mackinac Island was transferred to the State of Michigan as a state park, as a result, Australias Royal National Park is by some considerations the second oldest national park now in existence. The largest national park in the meeting the IUCN definition is the Northeast Greenland National Park. According to the IUCN,6,555 national parks worldwide met its criteria in 2006, IUCN is still discussing the parameters of defining a national park. National parks are almost always open to visitors, in 1971, these criteria were further expanded upon leading to more clear and defined benchmarks to evaluate a national park. In 1810, the English poet William Wordsworth described the Lake District as a sort of property, in which every man has a right and interest who has an eye to perceive. It was known as Hot Springs Reservation, but no authority was established. Federal control of the area was not clearly established until 1877, John Muir is today referred to as the Father of the National Parks due to his work in Yosemite. He published two articles in The Century Magazine, which formed the base for the subsequent legislation. President Abraham Lincoln signed an Act of Congress on July 1,1864, ceding the Yosemite Valley, according to this bill, private ownership of the land in this area was no longer possible. The state of California was designated to manage the park for use, resort. Leases were permitted for up to ten years and the proceeds were to be used for conservation, a public discussion followed this first legislation of its kind and there was a heated debate over whether the government had the right to create parks. The perceived mismanagement of Yosemite by the Californian state was the reason why Yellowstone at its establishment six years later was put under national control, in 1872, Yellowstone National Park was established as the United States first national park, being also the worlds first national park. In some European countries, however, national protection and nature reserves already existed, such as Drachenfels, Yellowstone was part of a federally governed territory
18.
Geology of Dorset
–
Dorset /ˈdɔːrsᵻt/ is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. Covering an area of 2,653 square kilometres, it borders Devon to the west, Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north-east, and Hampshire to the east. The great variation in its landscape owes much to the geology which includes an almost unbroken sequence of rocks from 200 Ma to 40 Ma. In general the oldest rocks appear in the far west of the county, throughout Dorset there are a number of limestone ridges. Between the bands of limestone and chalk are wide clay vales with flood plains, south-east Dorset, around Poole, Bournemouth and the New Forest, lies on younger and less resistant beds, Eocene clays, sands and gravels. These rocks produce thin soils that historically have supported a heathland habitat, the chalk and limestone hills of the Purbecks lie atop Britains largest onshore oil field. The field, operated from Wytch Farm, produces a high-quality oil and has the worlds oldest continuously pumping well at Kimmeridge, the source of this oil is the organic-rich shales found in the lower lias. Landslides along the coast have been known to ignite these shales causing cliff fires, when these continents collided to form the single super-continent of Pangaea, the sediments on the ocean floor were pushed up and over while the molten rock below the surface was forced out. Today, these intrusions and the red sandstones, visible in the neighbouring county of Devon. Around 204 Ma Dorset, now 30 degrees north, was under water, formed somewhere between 185 Ma and 204 Ma, in what was then a shallow marine environment, the Lower Lias Lias is composed of Blue Lias, Black Ven Marls and Green Ammonite Beds. The sides of the vale are mainly made from the clays and sands of the upper and lower Lias while younger strata from the Cretaceous Period, crown the higher points. The Blue Lias is the lowest of the Liassic stratum and where it is visible on the coast near Lyme Regis is layered with hard limestone, the iron pyrites in the clay can heat up when exposed to the air and occasionally ignite the shales. Around Lyme Regis, during the 18th and 19th centuries, the collecting, landslides and the excavation of the clays, used in cement production, exposed not only an abundance of ammonites of varying size, but much larger specimens such as ichthyosaurs and plesiosaurs. Although these rocks were formed underwater, the discovery of wood, land-dwelling animals. These sands are thought to have come from the islands now form part of Cornwall. Again, inland exposure is poor, although the middle Lias is visible along the line of the hills that surround the Marshwood Vale. The cliffs either side of Eype and the stretch between Thorncombe and Watton Cliff provide the best view. The base of the middle Lias is composed of three layers of calcareous sandstone beds separated by marls
19.
Imperial College London
–
Imperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom. Its founder, Prince Albert, envisioned an area comprised of the Victoria and Albert Museum, Natural History Museum, Royal Albert Hall, the Imperial Institute was opened by his wife, Queen Victoria, who laid the foundation stone in 1888. Imperial College London was granted a charter in 1907. In the same year, the joined the University of London. The curriculum was expanded to include medicine after merging with several medical schools. In 2004, Queen Elizabeth II opened the Imperial College Business School, Imperial is organized through faculties for Science, Engineering, Medicine, and Business. The main campus is located in South Kensington, the universitys emphasis is on emerging technology and its practical application. Imperials contributions to society include the discovery of penicillin, the development of fibre optics, Imperial is consistently ranked among the top universities in the world. In 2017, it ranked 8th in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, 9th in the QS World University Rankings, in 2015, Imperial was also ranked the most innovative university in Europe, and in 2017 as the 5th most international university in the world. Staff and alumni include 15 Nobel laureates,2 Fields Medalists,70 Fellows of the Royal Society,82 Fellows of the Royal Academy of Engineering, and 78 Fellows of the Academy of Medical Sciences. The Great Exhibition in 1851 was organised by Prince Albert, Henry Cole, Francis Fuller and other members of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce. The Great Exhibition made a surplus of £186,000 used in creating an area in the South of Kensington encouraging culture and education for everyone. Its founder, Prince Albert, envisioned an area composed of the Victoria and Albert Museum, Natural History Museum, Royal Albert Hall. Several royal colleges and the Imperial Institute merged to form what is now Imperial College London, as a result of a movement earlier in the decade, many politicians donated funds to establish the college, including Benjamin Disraeli, William Gladstone and Robert Peel. It was also supported by Prince Albert, who persuaded August Wilhelm von Hofmann to be the first professor, William Henry Perkin studied and worked at the college under von Hofmann, but resigned his position after discovering the first synthetic dye, mauveine, in 1856. It is considered the highest honour given in the chemical industry. The Royal School of Mines was established by Sir Henry de la Beche in 1851, developing from the Museum of Economic Geology and he created a school which laid the foundations for the teaching of science in the country, and which has its legacy today at Imperial. The Royal College of Science was established in 1881, the main objective was to support the training of science teachers and to develop teaching in other science subjects alongside the Royal School of Mines earth sciences specialities
20.
Wye, Kent
–
Wye is a mostly hilly village with a conservation area in Kent, England, centred 12 miles from Canterbury, and is also the main village in the civil parish of Wye with Hinxhill. The population of the ward was 2,282 in 2011, in March 2013 the village was voted 3rd best place to live in the UK by The Sunday Times. Wye became an important ancient communications centre because of the ford across the River Great Stour connecting the parts of the ancient trackway across the North Downs at this point. The Romans constructed their road between Canterbury and Hastings using the gap through the North Downs, remains of a Roman camp and villa have been found. By medieval times the town was a market, but in the later 18th century the new turnpike had bypassed the village on the bank of the river. Wye railway station was built when the line from Ashford to Margate was opened on 1 December 1846 by the South Eastern Railway. During the First World War, an aerodrome was established at Wye by the Royal Flying Corps, the station becoming RAF Wye in 1918 and closing the following year. It is described, Less than one round, and more suited to a greyhound track than a racecourse. The Wye Campus of the Imperial College of London was founded in 1447 as a Latin school and seminary by John Cardinal Kempe, Archbishop of Canterbury and it has been part of London University since 1900. Until 2005 it was a college, events in 2005 changed that. This was the subject of a campaign to oppose development on the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty through a local group, Wye Future Group. The campaign was documented by local author David Hewson in his book Saved. The Anglican church to Saints Gregory and Martin is in the highest category in the system of listed buildings. On the Downs east of the village is a crown as a carved in the chalk by students in 1902 to commemorate the coronation of Edward VII, at the 2001 UK census, the Wye electoral ward had a population of 2,405. The ethnicity was 94. 9% white,1. 5% mixed race,1. 8% Asian,1. 2% black and 0. 6% other. The place of birth of residents was 85. 4% United Kingdom,1. 1% Republic of Ireland,4. 5% other Western European countries, and 9% elsewhere. Religion was recorded as 75. 2% Christian,0. 4% Buddhist,0. 4% Hindu,15. 3% were recorded as having no religion,0. 2% had an alternative religion and 7. 2% did not state their religion. Compared with national figures, the ward had a high proportion of workers in agriculture, education, hotels
21.
Falmer Stadium
–
The stadium was handed over from the developers to the club on 31 May 2011. The first competitive game to be played at the stadium was the 2010–11 season final of the Sussex Senior Cup between Brighton and Eastbourne Borough on 16 July 2011. The first ever game was against Doncaster Rovers, who were also the opponents in the last ever game played at Brightons former stadium. The plans were initiated by Brighton & Hove Albion after the previous home. When the club was evicted at the end of the 1996–1997 season, the site at Falmer was identified during the 1998–99 season and it was hoped that the stadium would be ready in the early to mid-2000s. Planning permission was given by the authority of Brighton and Hove in June 2002. The plans for the stadium were opposed by neighbouring Lewes District Council, while the stadium lies completely within Brighton and Hove, part of the north-east of the site is in Lewes. Bennets Field, as it is known, is now used for parking and this led to the designation of the stadium plans being the subject of a separate planning inquiry by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. John Prescott, then Deputy Prime Minister, approved the plans on 28 October 2005, however, Lewes District Council immediately mounted a new legal challenge to the stadium plan. In April 2006, Prescott admitted that he had given his approval based on the misconception that only a part of the stadium site lay on the Lewes side. Hazel Blears, the Secretary of State responsible for planning, re-affirmed the approval on 25 July 2007 and her decision went against the advice of planning inspectors. Lewes District Council, Falmer Parish Council and the South Downs Joint Committee announced shortly afterwards that they would not mount a high court challenge, on 4 September 2007, the deadline for appealing the new grant of permission expired and the club received full permission to proceed. On 27 November 2008 the Buckingham Group signed the contract for the new stadium. The stadium is set three storeys down into the ground,138,000 cubic metres of chalk was excavated during its construction, which was put on the field on the south side of Village Way. This has been estimated to prevent 22,000 lorry trips taking the chalk to off-site landfill, construction at the site officially started on 17 December 2008 and finished in May 2011. The stadium was designed with scope for expansion, and plans were put in place to increase the capacity, the stadium was designed by London-based architects, KSS. The stadium capacity has expanded, with an extra seating tier being installed above the East Stand. The deal with American Express Europe, Brighton and Hoves biggest private-sector employer, the stadium uses hawks to scare away seagulls and pigeons
22.
Glossary of equestrian terms
–
This is a basic glossary of equestrian terms that includes both technical terminology and jargon developed over the centuries for horses and other equidae, as well as various horse-related concepts. Where noted, some terms are used only in American English, only in British English, or are regional to a part of the world. Action The way a horse elevates its legs, knees, hocks, Also includes how the horse uses its shoulder, humerus, elbow, and stifle, most often used to describe motion at the trot, but sometimes applied to the canter or gallop. High action is a characteristic of Saddlebreds and other breeds used in Saddle seat or certain harness disciplines. Originally referred to a horse with a mouth, generally eight years old or older. Term may refer to a seven years old or older, eight or older, nine or older. In horse racing and in horse shows, an aged horse is one over 4 years. In some contexts, a horse is older than 16 to 20 years of age. Aging The process of estimating a horses age by inspecting its teeth, Agistment, agister Agistment, letting out pasture to horse owners. Agister, an official of the New Forest Verderers who controls grazing on the Forest by New Forest Ponies, aids Signals from the rider or driver to the horse that tell the animal what the handler wants it to do. Generally broken down into two varieties, natural and artificial, Airs above the ground, Airs Movements in haute ecolé or high school classical dressage, where the horse leaves the ground with two or four feet in response to the riders commands. Made famous by the Lipizzan horses at the Spanish Riding School, the airs include the levade, capriole, croupade, courbette, amateur An individual who exhibits horses but is not paid money or other compensation. Amble A general term for a range of four beat intermediate speed horse gaits that are approximately the speed of a trot or pace, a specific intermediate speed horse gait, a slowed down pace. It is a four beat gait, where the legs on one side of the horse move one immediately following the other. It is a smooth gait, and is natural to some breeds. Ankle Incorrect term for the fetlock joint, the hock most closely corresponds to the human ankle. Arabian or Arab One of the oldest breeds of horse, noted for small size, dished face, erect carriage, high intelligence and lively disposition, many other breeds contain Arabian bloodlines. Arena An enclosed area for training or riding horses, artificial Insemination The practice of breeding a mare through human assisted means, with no contact between the stallion and mare
23.
Arnside and Silverdale
–
Arnside and Silverdale is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in England, on the border between Lancashire and Cumbria, adjoining Morecambe Bay. One of the smallest AONBs, It covers 29 square miles between the Kent Estuary, the River Keer and the A6 road, the area is characterised by low hills of Carboniferous Limestone, including Arnside Knott and Warton Crag, interspersed with grassland. Much of the area is covered by woodland, in which ash, oak. The coastal areas contain large areas of marsh, although these are under threat from the shifting channel of the Kent Estuary. The Leighton Moss nature reserve, owned by the RSPB, is the largest area of reedbeds in North West England, the bittern, one of the resident species, has been adopted as the logo of the AONB. In addition there are 15 SSSIs in the area, one of these, Arnside and Silverdale are the main villages in the area. Other settlements include Warton, Yealand Redmayne, Beetham and Storth, walks around Arnside & Silverdale Official website Arnside Online
24.
Blackdown Hills
–
The Blackdown Hills are a range of hills along the Somerset-Devon border in south-western England, which were designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in 1991. The plateau is dominated by hard chert bands of Upper Greensand with some remnants of chalk, the hills support an extensive range of wildlife leading to the designation of 16 Sites of Special Scientific Interest. There is evidence of occupation since the Iron Age. Fortifications include the remains of ancient hill forts, Norman motte-and-bailey castles, there are also religious buildings such as Dunkeswell Abbey and village churches. The hills are crossed by a network of roads with major transport routes including the M5 motorway running around the periphery. The Blackdowns form a region that has been designated as a national character area - No.147 - by Natural England. Straddling the borders of Somerset and Devon, the Blackdown Hills AONB covers an area of 370 square kilometres, heavily cut with sharp valleys, the hills reach their highest point of 315 metres above sea level at Staple Hill in Somerset. The hills in the part of the area, near Honiton in Devon, are more gentle. The Blackdown Hills are a sparsely populated area, much of the land is used for dairy farming, the River Culm rises at a spring near Culmhead and flows west through Hemyock, then Culmstock to Uffculme before joining the River Exe on the north-western outskirts of Exeter. The name of the river is thought to mean knot or tie, in reference to the twists and loops. The River Otter rises near Otterford, where a stream feeds the Otterhead lakes and it then flows south for 32 kilometres through East Devon to the English Channel at the western end of Lyme Bay. The Permian and Triassic sandstone aquifer in the Otter Valley is one of Devons largest groundwater sources, the other rivers are the River Yarty and the Corry Brook. Villages in the northern, Somerset part of the hills include Staple Fitzpaine, Buckland St Mary, Whitestaunton, Wambrook, the larger, more southerly area in Devon includes Dunkeswell, Upottery, Smeatharpe, Hemyock, Blackborough, Yarcombe, Membury, Stockland, Sheldon and Cotleigh. The geology of the Blackdown Hills together with the adjoining East Devon AONB is unique in south-west England, the Blackdown Hills form a flat plateau dominated by hard chert bands, made up of clay with flints, of Upper Greensand with some remnants of chalk. The cretaceous rocks rest over eroded Jurassic and Triassic beds, with an outcrop of Rhaetian beds, in the western areas the Upper Greensand is devoid of calcareous material but the sands yield fossils of marine bivalves and gastropods preserved in silica. Along with the rest of south-west England, the Blackdown Hills have a climate that is generally wetter and milder than the rest of England. January is the coldest month with mean temperatures between 1 °C and 2 °C. July and August are the warmest months, with daily maxima around 21 °C
25.
Cannock Chase
–
Cannock Chase is a mixed area of countryside in the county of Staffordshire, England. The area has designated as the Cannock Chase Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The Chase gives its name to the Cannock Chase local government district and it is a former Royal forest. Cannock Chase is located between Cannock, Lichfield, Rugeley and Stafford and it comprises a mixture of natural deciduous woodland, coniferous plantations, open heathland and the remains of early industry, such as coal mining. The landscape owes much to the underlying Triassic bunter formations, Cannock Chase was designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty on 16 September 1958 and is the smallest area so designated in mainland Britain, covering 68 km2. Much of the area is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest. A feeding station at the Marquis Drive Visitors Centre, sponsored by the West Midland Bird Club, attracts many species, including brambling, yellowhammer and bullfinch. Efforts are underway to increase the amount of heathland on the chase, reintroducing shrubs such as heather in some areas where bracken, the local flora also includes several species of Vaccinium, including the eponymous Cannock Chase berry. In January 2009, an outbreak of the plant pathogen Phytophthora ramorum was discovered on the chase, various restrictions were put in place in an attempt to prevent its spread. There are a number of centres, museums and waymarked paths, including the Heart of England Way. There are also trails to enable people to experience the health benefits of Cannock Chase. Additionally, there are many unmarked public paths, on the Chases north-eastern edge can be found Shugborough Hall, ancestral home of the Earls of Lichfield. At its southern edge are the remains of Castle Ring, an Iron Age hill fort, several glacial erratic boulders are also found on the Chase, remnants of glaciation. One is mounted on a plinth, the Chase has several war memorials, including German and Commonwealth war cemeteries. A memorial to the victims of the Katyn massacre was unveiled by Stefan Staniszewski, preserved below the memorial are phials of soil from both Warsaw and the Katyn forest. Freda, the Harlequin Great Dane mascot of the New Zealand Rifle Brigade is also buried on the chase marked with a marble headstone. The Chase is popular with mountain bike users. The purpose-built XC Follow the Dog trail is an 11 km technically-challenging route, opened in 2005 and it is open to all, however, it is not recommended for beginners
26.
Chichester Harbour
–
Chichester Harbour is a large natural harbour to the south west of the city of Chichester on the Solent. It straddles the boundary of West Sussex and Hampshire and it is one of four natural harbours in that area of the coastline, the others being Portsmouth Harbour, Langstone Harbour and Pagham Harbour. The harbour and surrounding land is managed by Chichester Harbour Conservancy, Chichester Harbour is one of the few remaining undeveloped coastal areas in Southern England and remains relatively wild. Its wide expanses and intricate creeks are at the time a major wildlife haven. The massive stretch of tidal flats and saltings are of outstanding ecological significance, very large populations of wildfowl and waders use the mudflats feeding on the rich plant life and the huge populations of intertidal invertebrates. More than 7,500 Brent geese overwinter on the intertidal mud-land and adjacent farmland, the harbourside villages are, West Wittering, West Itchenor, Birdham, Dell Quay, Fishbourne, Bosham, Chidham, Prinsted, Thorney Island, Emsworth, Langstone and Northney. The nearest towns are Havant, Chichester and Hayling Island, the harbour lowlands contain high quality arable farmland. Boatyards, marinas and commercial fishing are important elements of the local economy, the villages, sea walls and footpaths are a popular leisure area for residents and tourists alike. As well as being the harbour authority, the Conservancy manages the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. To the south west of the entrance to Chichester Harbour is Chichester Bar, the entrance to the harbour is deep with a fast tidal stream and to the east of the main harbour entrance channel is a gravel bank known as The Winner. The east side of the entrance is an area of geographical, recreational. It is a sand dune linked to land by a narrow area known as The Hinge. In recent years The Hinge has been breached by several storms, there is much debate about whether and how it should continue to be repaired. Chichester Harbour has three main channels, the Emsworth Channel, the Thorney Channel and the Chichester Channel, which also branches off into the Bosham Lake and Itchenor Reach. Chichester Harbour is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the harbour is of national and international importance for nature conservation. It is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, a wetland of importance, a Special Protection Area for wild birds. The harbour is of importance for wintering wildfowl and waders of which five species reach numbers which are internationally important. There are a number of habitats including an area of salt marsh habitat
27.
Chiltern Hills
–
The Chiltern Hills form a chalk escarpment in South East England. They are known locally as the Chilterns, a large portion of the hills was designated officially as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in 1965. The Chilterns cover an area of 833 km2, the boundary of the hills is clearly defined on the north west side by the scarp slope. The dip slope is by definition more gradual, and merges with the landscape to the south east, the Thames is a clear end point to the south west, whereas north east of Luton the hills decline slowly in prominence. The chalk escarpment of the Chiltern Hills overlooks the Vale of Aylesbury, the beds of the Chalk Group were deposited over the buried northwestern margin of the Anglo-Brabant Massif during the Upper Cretaceous. During this time, sources for siliciclastic sediment had been eliminated due to the high sea level. The Chalk Group, like the underlying Gault Clay and Upper Greensand, is diachronous and this phase of deformation tilted the chalk strata to the southeast in the area of the Chiltern Hills. The gently dipping beds of rock were eroded, forming an escarpment, the chalk strata are frequently interspersed with layers of flint nodules which apparently replaced chalk and infilled pore spaces early in the diagenetic history. Flint has been mined for millennia from the Chiltern Hills and they were first extracted for fabrication into flint axes in the Neolithic period, then for knapping into flintlocks. Nodules are to be everywhere in the older houses as a construction material for walls. The highest point is at 267 m above sea level at Haddington Hill near Wendover in Buckinghamshire, the nearby Ivinghoe Beacon is a more prominent hill, although its altitude is only 249 m. To the east of Ivinghoe Beacon is Dunstable Downs, a section of the Chiltern scarp. Near Wendover is Coombe Hill,260 m above sea level, the more gently sloping country – the dip slope – to the southeast of the Chiltern scarp is also generally referred to as part of the Chilterns, it contains much beech woodland and many villages. Enclosed fields account for almost 66% of the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty area, the next most important, and archetypal, landscape form is woodland, covering 21% of the Chilterns, which is thus one of the most heavily wooded areas in England. Other rivers arising near the Chilterns include the Mimram, Ver, Gade, Bulbourne, Chess, Misbourne and these are classified as chalk streams, although the Lea is degraded by water from road drains and sewage treatment works. The River Thames flows through a gap between the Berkshire Downs and the Chilterns, portions of the northern and north-eastern Chilterns around Leighton Buzzard and Hitchin are drained by the Ouzel, Flit and Hiz, all of which ultimately lead to the River Great Ouse. A number of routes pass through the Chilterns in natural or man-made corridors. There are also over 2,000 km of footpaths in the Chilterns, including long-distance trackways such as the Icknield Way
28.
Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
–
The Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty covers 958 square kilometres in Cornwall, England, UK, that is, about 27% of the total area of the county. It comprises 12 separate areas, designated under the National Parks, of the areas, eleven cover stretches of coastline, the twelfth is Bodmin Moor. The areas are treated as a single Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Section 89 places a duty on Local Planning Authorities with an AONB within their administrative area to produce a 5-year management plan. The areas were designated in 1959, except for the Camel estuary which was added in 1981, the Partnership also has an advisory role, providing advice to Cornwall Council and other organisations on matters such as planning and project development. The first Cornwall AONB Management Plan was adopted by the members of the Cornwall AONB Partnership in July 2004, the latest Cornwall AONB Management Plan was adopted by Cornwall Council and the members of the Cornwall AONB Partnership in February 2011
29.
Cranborne Chase
–
Cranborne Chase is a chalk plateau in central southern England, straddling the counties Dorset, Hampshire and Wiltshire. The plateau is part of the English Chalk Formation and is adjacent to Salisbury Plain and the West Wiltshire Downs in the north, the scarp slope of the hills faces the Blackmore Vale to the west, and to some extent the Vale of Wardour to the north. The chalk gently slopes south and dips under clays and gravels, an area of 379 square miles of Cranborne Chase and the West Wiltshire Downs has been designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the sixth largest AONB in the country. The highest point is Win Green, in Wiltshire, at 910 ft, the downland has a long history with many earthworks and archaeology from the Neolithic age onwards. Much of the area remained wooded from the Middle Ages until World War II. e. the skeletons were prevented from falling apart during repeated removal and re-burial. There is a Roman villa which has been dug by archaeological television programme Time Team, the downs have been sparsely populated since Saxon times, largely preserving archaeology until World War II when the need for agricultural land outweighed the archaeological importance. It was here that Augustus Pitt Rivers developed modern archaeological work in the 19th century. The downs are named after the village Cranborne, founded by the Saxons, which had a manor house, the word chase comes from the hunts, frequented by royalty, which took place on the downs. The first known owner of the chase is thought to have been Brictric and this passed to his son-in-law Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester. Ownership of the chase passed through successive Earls of Gloucester until the death of Gilbert de Clare, the chase passed to his sister Elizabeth de Clare, and thence to her granddaughter Elizabeth de Burgh, 4th Countess of Ulster. The Countess was succeeded by her daughter Philippa, 5th Countess of Ulster, wife of Edmund Mortimer, the chase was owned by successive Earls of March until 1461, when the last Earl was crowned as Edward IV of England. Cranborne Chase remained crown property until 1616, when it was granted to Robert Cecil and his great-grandson, the 3rd Earl, sold it to Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury in 1671. His son, the 2nd Earl, sold it in 1692 to Thomas Freke, Pitt inherited Cranborne Chase from her in 1714, and it passed from father to son in the Pitt family to his great-grandson George Pitt, 2nd Baron Rivers, after whose death it was disfranchised. Much of the Chase is still owned by large estates such as Kingston Lacy, nearby, another prominent top, Melbury Hill above Melbury Abbas, appears almost like an island rising above the flat, sea-like expanses of Compton Abbas airfield. Further south are two summits on an outlier of the Chase that define its southern limits, Hambledon. An area of 1,115 acres of Cranborne Chase has been notified as a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest, as some of the wooded areas in the chase are centuries old, they possess a diverse ground flora that is associated with such sites. The area is one of the richest in southern England for numbers of lichen species, bowerchalke - Geological profile of a Lower Greensand inlier on chalklands of Cranborne Chase Pitt-Rivers, Michael,1968
30.
Dedham Vale
–
Dedham Vale is a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty on the Essex-Suffolk border in east England. It comprises the area around the River Stour between Manningtree and Smallbridge Farm,1 mile east of Bures, including the village of Dedham in Essex. It is part of the area known since the artists lifetime as Constable Country, among many other works of the area is his 1802 Dedham Vale in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Dedham Vale supports a viable and diverse agriculture with a mix of farm sizes, the majority of the land in the valley is still farmed despite development pressures. Farming is the tool for supporting the area’s landscape and wildlife. Arger Fen, a Site of Special Scientific Interest, contains areas of ancient woodland, meadow, throughout the valley Eocene and glacial deposits overlay chalk deposited during the Cretaceous period. London Clay and sands are often exposed on the sides as the river. The composition of these layers and where they occur is paramount in determining what species will grow, the River Stour is the key landscape focus for the valley, its course is defined by bank-side trees and wet meadows. It supports a variety of riparian habitats, the valley floor has a large areas of functioning floodplain. Water quality is good, meeting levels demanded in regulations, the catchment meets sustainable demands for water supply, flood control and recreational use, whilst retaining an unspoilt character and healthy ecosystem. The river has become an important method of controlling water levels both in the countryside and irrigating crops. Humans have had a influence on the landscape including building isolated settlements, transport links. Agricultural workers divided up the land to plant crops, grow timber, the landscape continues to change as changing agricultural practices, increased leisure time and an awareness of environmental concerns all contribute to development of the Stour valley
31.
East Devon AONB
–
East Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty covers over 100 square miles of the East Devon countryside. This countryside includes eighteen miles of Heritage coastline, the designated area covers, twenty-nine parishes and borders the coastal towns of Exmouth, Seaton and Sidmouth but includes the entire resort of Budleigh Salterton. East Devon has two AONBs within its catchment area includes the Blackdown Hills and East Devon AONB, both AONBs make up over 66% of the district. East Devon AONB Partnership is a joint initiative funded by Defra, East Devon District Council, through ventures such as community projects and project grants East Devon AONB Partnership helps to conserve and manage the East Devon AONB. East Devon AONB Website BBC Review of Heritage Coastal Walk
32.
Forest of Bowland
–
It was once described as the Switzerland of England. The Forest of Bowland has been designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty since 1964, the Forest of Bowland AONB also includes a detached part known as the Forest of Pendle separated from the main part by the Ribble Valley, and anciently a forest with its own separate history. One of the features of the area is Pendle Hill. There are more than 500 listed buildings and 18 scheduled monuments within the AONB, while the Trough of Bowland represents the area, to many, on account of its popularity, it is in fact only a small part of the wider Forest of Bowland area. The hills on the side of the Forest of Bowland attract walkers from Lancaster. Overlooking Lancaster is Clougha Pike, the western-most hill, the hills form a large horseshoe shape with its open end facing west. Clockwise from Lancaster the hills are Clougha Pike, Grit Fell, Wards Stone, Wolfhole Crag, White Hill, Whins Brow, Totridge, Parlick, Fair Snape Fell, Bleasdale Moor, and Hawthornthwaite Fell. Considerable areas of the Bowland fells were used for training during the Second World War. The area contains the centre of Great Britain which is close to the Whitendale Hanging Stones. The historical extent of Bowland Forest is divided into two large townships, Great Bowland and Little Bowland, but the modern-day AONB covers a much larger area. A region of the British kingdom of Rheged, Bowland was absorbed into Northumbria in the 7th century, in 926, Amounderness was annexed by Aethelstan, king of the West Saxons, as a spoil of war. In 934, he granted it to Wulfstan I, Archbishop of York, as such, Amounderness encompassed a significant portion of western and south-western Bowland. Contrary to the histories, the origins of the name Bowland have nothing to do with archery or with mediaeval cattle farms or vaccaries. The name derives from the Old Norse boga-/bogi-, meaning a bend in a river and it is a 10th-century coinage used to describe the topography of the Hodder basin, with its characteristic meandering river and brooks. Before the Norman Conquest, Bowland was held by Tostig, son of Godwin, in all likelihood, it was this grant that subsumed the eastern portion of Amounderness into the Lordship of Bowland for the first time. By the end of the 11th century, the Forest and Liberty came into the possession of the De Lacys, Lords of Pontefract. In 1102, along with the grant of the adjacent fee of Clitheroe and further holdings in Hornby and Amounderness, in 1311, the Honor of Clitheroe was subsumed into the Earldom of Lancaster. Between 1351 and 1661, it was administered as part of the Duchy of Lancaster, the manors within the Liberty were Slaidburn Knowlmere, Waddington, Easington, Bashall Eaves, Mitton, Withgill, Leagram, Hammerton and Dunnow
33.
High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
–
The High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is situated in south-east England. Covering an area of 1,450 square kilometres, it extends across the counties of Surrey, West Sussex, East Sussex and it is the fourth largest Area of Outstanding Beauty in England and Wales. It is characterised by an attractive, small-scale landscape containing a mosaic of small farms and woodlands, historic parks, sunken lanes, the High Weald AONB was designated under the National Park and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 in October 1983. AONBs do not possess separate administrative structures like Britains National Parks, in the case of the High Weald, this requires co-ordination of the policies and management activities of fifteen local authorities, comprising four counties and eleven district authorities. The High Weald lies at the core of the distinctive Weald anticline, at its margins are the relatively flat clay vales of the Low Weald, the Greensand Ridge, the North Downs and South Downs. At the centre, the sandstones and clays formed geologically of the Hastings Beds of the early Cretaceous era rise up to give the characteristic forested ridges of the High Weald. This geology and the subsequent dissection of the core by rivers such as the Ouse, Medway. The headwaters of rivers have cut deep, steep-sided valleys which are wet. On this underlying geological structure centuries if not millennia of activity have created the landscape that is visible today. At the time of the Domesday Book,1086, the High Weald was the most wooded natural area in England, today,24. 6% of the AONB is woodland, compared with a national average of about 9%. Of this,17. 6% is ancient woodland, in other words, the area of the High Weald AONB represents only 1% of England yet it has 3. 4% of Englands woodlands, making it one of the most densely wooded landscapes. The unique Wealden landscape of fields and scattered farmsteads was created by pioneer farmers of the late medieval period. The early settlements in this period were formed on the better soils, the drier ridge tops and the river valleys. The highest sandstone hills of the High Weald are referred to as the Weald Forest Ridge and this ridge includes a number of ancient heathland forests, notably Ashdown Forest, St Leonards Forest, Worth Forest and Dallington Forest. Ancient woodland covers 22% of the Weald Forest Ridge, which represents a significant proportion of the resource in the UK, two major towns, Tunbridge Wells and Crowborough, lie within the AONB but are excluded from it. Battle, with more than 6,000 inhabitants, is the largest settlement actually in the AONB, the High Weald AONB is closely bordered by several major population centres, notably Crawley, Horsham, East Grinstead, Tonbridge, Hastings, Uckfield and Haywards Heath. Farming was always a marginal activity in the High Weald and this, combined with the areas relative inaccessibility, made it historically one of the least prosperous areas of south-east England. However, the growth of the iron industry from about 1490, together with the development of crafts such as weaving and tanning, made it, for a time
34.
Howardian Hills
–
The Howardian Hills take their name from the Howard family who still own local lands, and are located between the Yorkshire Wolds, the North York Moors National Park and the Vale of York. The Howardian Hills form 79 square miles of well-wooded undulating countryside between the flat agricultural Vales of Pickering and York, the irregular 558 feet high ridges of the Howardian Hills are a southern extension of the rocks of the Hambleton Hills in the North York Moors. Jurassic limestone and a network of pasture, extensive woodland, trees, on the eastern edge, the River Derwent cuts through the Hills in the Kirkham Gorge, a deep winding valley formed as an overflow channel from glacial Lake Pickering. Although there are no towns within the AONB, the towns of Helmsley. From Malton to Hovingham is a line of spring line villages, high grade arable land, pasture and managed woodland makes this rich farming country whose diversity contributes to its attractive rural character. Characteristic species include brown hare, lapwing, tree sparrow and barn owl as well as several local rarities such as knapweed broomrape, Kirkham Gorge on the River Derwent, Yorkshire is a unique glacial overflow channel of great scientific importance. Each of these attributes is important in its own right, as a working landscape, the interests of agriculture, forestry, rural enterprise and the economic and social needs of communities in the AONB are important. Providing advice, practical support and grant aid to farmers and landowners to protect and enhance wildlife habitat, working with the County Councils Rights of Way Team to improve access. Restoring historic field boundaries including hedgerows and stone walls, implementing habitat restoration and management projects. Safeguarding the historic environment by renovating traditional features and buildings, scutinising strategies and planning applications to avoid intrusive development. Bateman, J. Howardian Hills Field Collection Survey John Bateman, ampleforth Parish Council Village partly in the Howardian Hills AONB
35.
Lincolnshire Wolds
–
The Lincolnshire Wolds is a range of hills in the county of Lincolnshire, England. It is a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and the highest area of land in eastern England between Yorkshire and Kent and they run roughly parallel with the North Sea coast, from the River Humber in the north-west to the edge of the Lincolnshire Fens in the south-east. The Wolds comprise a series of low hills and steep valleys underlain by calcareous and sandstone rock, the characteristic open valleys of the Wolds were created during the last glacial period through the action of glaciation and meltwater. The Red Hill nature reserve near the village of Goulceby is notable for the red colour of its soil. Wolds Top is the highest point in the whole of Lincolnshire and is marked by a point just north of the village of Normanby le Wold. The Lincolnshire Wolds were designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in 1973, the Wolds AONB cuts across the council boundaries of Lincolnshire County Council, East Lindsey District Council, West Lindsey District Council and North East Lincolnshire Council. The boundaries of the AONB are marked by tourist signs incorporating stylized hills and trees, placed on roads leading into, the placing of these signs has not been uncontroversial, with some residents unhappy that they outline only the Wolds AONB and not the cultural/geographical area as a whole. The Wolds are sparsely populated and have a rural character, there is also an abundance of mediaeval lost villages – settlements abandoned due to changes in land use, soil exhaustion and disease. Several notable roads and paths run over the Wolds, Caistor High Street, the path of a Roman road and now the route of the B1225, runs from Caistor to Baumber near Horncastle. The ancient Bluestone Heath Road follows the course of an ancient drove road from west to east across the Wolds, the Wolds are now promoted as a tourist destination, the areas connection with Tennyson is being exploited, and farmers are being encouraged to diversify into the tourism industry. The roads of the Wolds are particularly popular with motorcyclists, Lincolnshire Wolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The Lincolnshire Wolds in the nineteenth century, Natural England Publications, Communisis Print Management, Balliol Business Park West, Benton Lane, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE12 8EW, The Countryside Commission. Precursor to the Natural England designation Thorold
