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£7.8 million conservation plan for Cannock Chase to be scrutinised

A £7.8 million conservation plan which is hoped will protect a beauty spot’s wildlife and landscape for years to come is to be scrutinised.

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Cannock Chase

Creating more car parking spaces away from vulnerable areas will help manage the millions of visits to Cannock Chase each year, while maintaining open access to the Staffordshire countryside.

Plans also include continued free parking in 50 locations across the Chase, investment in improving trails and providing conservation education in schools and with children’s groups, as well as direct with visitors.

The investment over 15 years is planned by the Cannock Chase Special Area of Conservation Partnership (SAC) and will be funded by money from housing developers.

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Now Staffordshire County Council is considering how the proposals might be implemented on the part of Cannock Chase that it is responsible for.

Victoria Wilson, Staffordshire County Council’s cabinet member for communities, said: “By 2026 we expect Cannock Chase to receive 3,000,000 visits a year so we must balance maintaining open access with our legal and moral duty to protect the landscape and wildlife for future generations.

“An integral part of the SAC’s conservation proposals is the introduction of a car parking strategy which has the intention of reducing recreational pressure where the landscape and wildlife are most vulnerable and increasing parking capacity in the more robust locations.”

If the proposals are introduced 51 parking locations – two-thirds of them providing four spaces or fewer – will close, but that will be outweighed by the creation of more spaces overall, including 50 locations with free parking.

None of the proposals changes people’s rights of access to Cannock Chase and Blue Badge holders will still park for free at all county council sites, while disabled access will be maintained and improvements made to a disabled access trail.

The authority already charges at three parking sites in the area and is initially considering introducing charges, from 2022 at the earliest, at a maximum of 12 other locations.

The proposals will be discussed at the meeting of the county council’s prosperous Staffordshire committee on November 12.

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