A fresh report has publicised that England’s best landscapes are worth more than £20 billion a year to the UK’s economy.
So much more than the view... is the most recent publication released from England’s Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and National Parks which highlights the extensive range of benefits the iconic areas afford in our society.
AONBs and National Parks like that of Trelissick Garden near our luxury Cornwall cottages account for a quarter of England. You might be surprised to learn that over two thirds of people in England are situated within a thirty minute journey of at least one of these destinations. Additionally, annually, these sites accommodate more than 260 million people who visit them, resulting in more than £6 billion spent, while supporting thousands of jobs and in excess of 85,000 businesses.
Environment Minister Rory Stewart said: “Our British landscapes are among the most beautiful and precious in the world. And such land remains central to the British imagination, to our souls and to our identity.
“We would miss such landscapes profoundly if they were gone. We have a deep obligation to protect this land, its farms and its communities.
“This report also reminds us that safeguarding our countryside can also generate economic value, how our protected landscapes are increasingly rare in a rapidly developing world and just how precious they are to visitors and residents. However, while we celebrate the fact that they have also to potential to bring prosperity, we must never reduce such places simply to their economic value – they are so much more than that.”
Image: Neil Kennedy under Creative Commons.