A new plan has been launched in a bid to help safeguard the Sperrin Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).
The first management plan for the Sperrins since it was first designated as a special landscape in 1968, the cross-council project will outline strategies, priorities and mechanisms for protecting, promoting and enhancing the special features of the landscape, related heritage and culture as well as boost nature recovery.
The Sperrins Partnership will develop the new plan alongside the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA), with a view to placing local communities at the centre of its development. The partnership project involves the Mid Ulster; Fermanagh and Omagh; Derry City and Strabane; and the Causeway Coast and Glens councils.
A guideline framework for action will recognise and support efforts of partners in line with their own remits and resources.
It will also help guide efforts to conserve, enhance, and support, the special character of Sperrin AONB and its natural, built, and cultural heritage.
The plan will seek support for local communities to benefit from the AONB, while championing long term sustainability and conservation efforts.
An extensive consultation exercise which is part of the plan development phase, is underway, and a number of public events will take place across council areas throughout May and June.
Chair of Sperrins Partnership, Cllr Sean Clarke, said: “The management plan will be developed on behalf of DAERA and NIEA through extensive consultation with key stakeholders and local communities with the aim to identify the issues facing the area’s exceptional natural environment, and to help ensure that everyone who lives, works or visits can learn from and enjoy the place sustainably.”