Damaged but saved

Our part of England together with what was Westmorland and the Yorkshire Dales are the areas in which the best examples of Limestone Pavements are to be found.
Most examples have long strips of rock ( called clints) with channels between them ( called grykes). Often unusual limestone loving plants can be found in the grykes.

Before 1981 important areas of pavement were being lost. Commercial interests were breaking up the pavements and selling them at a good profit to be turned into garden rockeries.

The Wildlife and Countryside Act of 1981 large put a stop to this. All the important examples now have protection.

My photo shows a part of the small wood which we own. It still has some areas of undamaged clints and grykes among the trees. But before the law changed these blocks had been dug out ready to be taken from the site. Although they are not as they once were the still provide a good area for wildlife.