Northumbrian Water is set to transform an area of poor quality grassland in County Durham into a thriving habitat for flora and fauna.

Landowners, farmers and conservationists from the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales are joining forces in an ambitious partnership to create one of the UK’s largest nature-focused landscape programmes.

The Government has announced the accelerated roll out of the Sustainable Farming Incentive - a key part of the Government’s Environmental Land Management schemes - will provide farmers with a diverse range of paid actions to manage hedgerows for wildlife, plant nectar-rich wildflowers and manage crop pests without the use of insecticides.

Catchment Sensitive Farming advice is now available to farmers, land managers and growers across England following the expansion of the programme.

Plans for the scheme to replace the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy depend on changes in land use that bring both increased farm productivity and environmental benefits, but a new report from the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee says Defra itself concedes “its confidence in the scheme looks like blind optimism”.

Yorkshire Water and United Utilities have asked their tenants and land managers to halt controlled burning on their land until further notice.

Landowners covering more than a third of Yorkshire’s land area gathered at Cloth Hall in Leeds recently to discuss how changes to land management can help tackle the challenge of climate change.

A comprehensive new satellite-based earth monitoring system providing free, full and open mapping data to boost management and protection of the environment is now available to decision makers seeking monitor vital land management activities and changes in vegetation.

Defra has launched a new payment scheme for hill farmers who protect and look after England’s iconic uplands.