A CUMBRIAN conservation charity has called on the Government, industry and local authorities to ‘step-up investment in nature’s recovery and climate change mitigation’.

The ‘Let Nature Help’ joint report by Cumbria Wildlife Trust and other Wildlife Trusts around the UK is calling for greater restoration of habitats such as peatlands and wetlands in order to store carbon.

It also urges restoration of nature in seas around the UK by ‘introducing effective management’ of marine protected areas and by creating a number of ‘highly-protected marine areas’. This, says the report, would enable the seas to ‘absorb more human-made carbon dioxide emissions.’

"Nature in the UK is in a sorry state and important habitats are damaged and declining. Efforts to cut our emissions must be matched with determined action to fix our broken ecosystems so they can help stabilise our climate. Restoring nature in the UK needs to be given top priority," said Craig Bennett, CEO of The Wildlife Trusts.

“We are one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world; restoring nature would help avert the climate catastrophe, create jobs, prevent flooding, stop our water being polluted, make us all healthier and allow wildlife to become abundant once more.”