The plans will be the subject of a consultation event held at St Neot Village Hall on January 14, commencing at 2pm and finishing at 6pm. It will involve the opportunity to speak to the team behind the plans with refreshments provided.
The charity says that it aims to: “achieve a self-sustaining and genetically diverse population of beavers in the project area, so we can collectively feel the benefits from this keystone species being back in the landscape, with landowners and communities supported through the transition to living alongside beavers."
A spokesperson for the Cornwall Wildlife Trust said of their work: “Over the past year our beaver officer has been leading on the wild release licence application process, speaking to local landowners and developing our approach to beaver management.
“Although in early 2024 beaver presence was found to be present on our Helman Tor Nature Reserve, which we assume was from an unauthorised release, we are continuing work on our wild release licence application.
“We have established a Beaver Project Steering Group, with local expertise and stakeholders to advise on our project development. Members include Environment Agency, Natural England, Cornwall Council, Westcountry Rivers Trust and South West Water.
“Subject to a successful licence being granted by Natural England, we will work with landowners to manage any impacts and monitor any changes to the landscape.
“We have been engaging with stakeholders in the project area, with over 30 meetings and site visits to date.
“Engagement is ongoing across the area. If you would like to find out more about living alongside beavers and how we can help, get in touch with Lauren Jasper, beaver officer at [email protected]”
The program comes nearly a year after a wild beaver was discovered to be present at the charity’s Helman Tor reserve, one of the places where they plan to obtain the licence to reintroduce beavers.
It was suspected that the beaver may have been released illegally into the wild by an unidentified third party.
At the time, Cheryl Marriott, director of nature and people at Cornwall Wildlife Trust says:
“We know Helman Tor is highly suitable for beavers and that they would benefit other wildlife and help towards reducing flood risk further downstream.
“However, we also know some people have legitimate worries about beavers returning to our landscape, and we have been meeting them to understand their concerns and plan how to manage any future issues.
“This is not how we wanted beaver reintroduction to happen at Helman Tor. We do not condone the unlicensed release of beavers. Their arrival at Helman Tor has taken everyone by surprise, but we are ready to monitor them and work with others to manage any problems.”